Total Drama Island: The New Season
by HolyGrail2007
Summary: The new season of Total Drama Island is underway. Another twenty-two campers will take the plunge into sadistic and insane challenges for the sick amusement of the fans.
1. Introductions: The Dock of Shame

_"And welcome, everyone, to the 2__nd__ season of Total Drama Island! In our last show, we pit 22 teens against each other for the promise of a wimpy cash prize and cheap tabloid stardom, and this time, we're doing it all over again. We've got some new campers joining us at Lake Wawanawkwa, new stunts from them to risk life and limb all for your sick twisted enjoyment, all on the shores of our crappy derelict old summer camp. So, kick back, relax, and enjoy the 2__nd__ season of Total Drama Island!" _

The first boat pulled in towards the dock, where Chris MacLean awaited. It was time, time for them to arrive. As it reached the end of the dock and the gangplank came down, Chris smiled slightly. He had to go over the top this season to surpass last season's wicked stunts, and he was pretty sure that he had it down. These campers weren't going to know what hit them.

The first camper stepped off the boat, and out stepped a woman. Her brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she was clad in full camo gear. She surveyed the area furtively, her eyes darting back and forth as if she expected someone to jump out at any second.

"Kelly!" Chris called out. "Welcome to Camp Wawanawkwa!" He moved over to her.

"Oh, yes, hello." She replied calmly. "I'm the first to arrive? Good. Hope you don't mind that I only brought one suitcase, I don't carry much."

"Complaining that you only brought one suitcase? First chick I know that's said that." Chris shrugged. As Kelly moved back to the other end of the dock, the second boat immediately followed.

"Hey, welcome to camp, Henry." Chris greeted the next person. Short, tanned, and dressed in a cowboy hat, T-shirt, and jeans, the next camper seemed ready for this show.

"Yeehaw!" Henry cheered and gave Chris a high-five. "This'll be great, ya know. Never had anythin' like this back on the farm." He turned towards Kelly.

"Hey there, hon!" He shouted. Kelly ignored him and looked towards the dock at the next oncoming boat.

"This is Neil." Chris gestured towards the boat, but no camper stepped off.

"Yo!" Chris called into the boat, but again, no camper stepped off. However, a cloud of smoke appeared at the gangplank, causing the host to cough. When the smoke faded, there was a person standing where it was. He was dressed in a top hat and black cape, carrying a toy magic wand.

"Dang, dude, you sure can make an entrance!" Henry shouted.

"A modicum of magic from me to you. Good to be here on the stage." Neil returned, removing his hat and delivering a sweeping bow to Chris and the other two campers. He moved towards the two campers and took out a deck of cards and began to shuffle it. Chris turned his attention towards the next boat to arrive.

"Welcome, Tanya." Chris greeted the new arrival, a short, curly dark haired girl.

"It's great to meet you...ooph!" She turned to greet Chris, but tripped and fell on her face.

"Aww, shucks, hon." Henry turned to help her to her feet.

"Thanks...I'm Tanya, it's so nice to meet you!" Tanya grabbed Henry and kissed him on the cheek.

"Whoa, hon, don't put yer feet on the gas so fast! Scary!" Henry backed away from her, leaving Tanya to sigh sadly.

"Everyone, this is Allison." Chris introduced the next camper, a red-headed girl with a large pair of headphones on her ears.

"Nice phones." Kelly smiled towards her, but Allison made no response.

"Hello! Are you there?" Kelly moved towards her, and heard the faint vestiges of music from Allison's headphones.

"She must be blasting that music." Kelly muttered, then turned towards Allison again. "Hey, there!" She shouted. Allison turned towards her and removed the headphones from her ears.

"What?" She asked.

"Never mind." Kelly turned away and went back to Neil, who started with a card trick.

"Man, that girl is frosty as..." Chris started, but heard the next boat arrive with the next contestant.

"Meet Edward, everyone." From off the boat came a blonde man dressed in white.

"Hello." The next camper responded tersely.

"Nice to meet you." Tanya smiled. "I'm Tanya. Can I call you Eddie?"

"Edward...Eddie...Ed...I don't care." Edward huffed and walked away from everyone else, only glancing at the other campers. Tanya frowned at his cold response, and sat down on the dock.

"Alright, welcome our next two campers, Kenny and Shannon." Chris directed the group's attention towards the next arrivals. The first was a tall dark-haired well-built man in a green tank top and green cargo pants, while the second was a slim girl wearing an orange shirt and black skirt.

"You two arrived together?" Edward asked.

"They're brother and sister." Chris responded. "We changed the rules up a little. Shannon's 14, so she's younger then all of you."

"Kenny!" Shannon grabbed her brother's arm. "This is great! We're going to do so great here!"

"Yeah..." Kenny trailed off and gently pulled his arm free. "Why don't you go introduce yourself? I'll be along shortly."

"No, let's stick together!" Shannon dragged her brother towards the other campers.

"Hi, I'm Shannon, and this is Kenny. I hope we can all get along as we compete!" Shannon cheered, while Kenny remained mute.

"You two joined at the hip?" Neil asked. Kenny shook his head, while Shannon nodded, completely oblivious to her brother's contradictory remark.

"Shannon..." Kenny tried to wrestle his arm free as the next camper arrived to the dock.

"And this lovely lady is Amanda." Chris helped the next camper off of the boat.

"Hey, now that's what I'm talking about!" Kenny smiled. Amanda was a very lovely girl with long strawberry blonde hair.

"Thank you." Amanda spoke quickly to Chris, and moved to the other campers. She stopped to look at Shannon.

"You..." Amanda started to speak, but paused.

"Yes?" Shannon asked.

"You have...great style. I...I love your skirt." Amanda spoke hesitantly, as if she was unsure of which words to use.

"Really? Thanks! But you're so much prettier. Your hair is, like, perfect." Shannon smiled.

"Not really. Not...like yours." Amanda said. Shannon let go of Kenny to speak with Amanda.

"Now I really like this girl. Gotta learn to speak up though. Hope she's on my team." He said under his breath.

"Next up, meet Bobby." Chris introduced the next man, a short man with perfectly pressed clothes and neat appearance.

"Hmph." Bobby completely ignored Chris as he walked down the dock. He first came across Allison, who sighed at him with indifference as she fiddled with her headphones. At this reaction, Bobby scowled and pulled one of the earpads off of her ear.

"Oh please, Pouty McHeadphones. Treat your betters with respect." He let go of the earpad, causing it to smack against Allison's head.

"Oh, so that's what kind of man you are." Allison rolled up her sleeve and started to move in.

"You think you can take me in a fight, little wimpy girl? Try me!" Bobby and Allison were locked in a staring match and seconds away from fighting.

"Easy there!" Chris stated. "The other campers are still showing up. Spread it out for the whole episode, we'll get better ratings. In the meantime, let's meet our next camper. Welcome to the island, Stella." Chris turned towards the next boat, where a girl with long black hair, dressed all in leather, stepped down to the dock.

"Yo." She waved to the host. "Nice to see ya." She grabbed her luggage and threw it to the dock, only keeping one, a guitar case, with her. She strolled past the other campers

"Nice headphones, girl. They give out good bass?" She said to Allison, who smiled only briefly at finding someone like her, before going back to glaring at Bobby.

"Welcome, Daniel." Chris greeted the twelfth camper to join them. Dressed in a pair of bright orange goggles and a white fur hat, a summer camp seemed the last place he would visit.

"Good to be here." Daniel responded, reaching back into the boat to pull out a pair of skis.

"Skis?" Kenny asked. "It's the middle of the summer."

"They're lucky." Daniel returned. "Besides, you can cross-country in the summer. Or we can get really lucky and get a freak blizzard!"

"I like skiing!" Tanya moved towards the newcomer. "Can I help you with those?"

"No thanks, sweetie. I got it." Daniel moved to the end of the dock, with Tanya following him.

"I think she doesn't get that it's supposed to be about keeping a boyfriend." Kenny gave an aside to Edward, who didn't respond.

"Our next contestant is Jessica." Chris introduced a girl who wore an excessive amount of jewelry.

"Ugh, what kind of place IS this!" She complained. "Daddy would never let me stay here! There's...just nothing! Even poor people should have brains enough not to make this crap!"

"Oh, great, a spoiled princess." Kelly moaned to Neil, who shared in her distaste.

"What are all you looking at. You've never seen someone who doesn't share in your squalor?"

"Hey, prima donna!" Bobby shouted. "Why don't you take your fake tan off this island and spare us the trouble later. Even Headphones and Magician over there are better then your noise!"

"How dare you!" Jessica retorted. "Do you know who I am?"

"No, and that's how it's going to stay." Bobby snidely spit in her direction, causing the princess to groan.

"Hey, Chris, bring us the next contestant. Anything's better then her mouth." He ordered the host.

"O...kay. Everyone, meet Martin." Chris directed the group's attention to the newest arrival, a tall, black haired man wearing blue jeans and a white polo. He fingered a crucifix around his neck frequently.

"God gives us this fortunate day. Blessed be." He intoned solemnly.

"A preacher?" Kelly wondered. "I thought they stuck away from those types of people on these kinds of shows."

"I'm okay with 'em." Henry responded.

"As long as he doesn't try to convert me, or think my illusions are witchcraft and heresy or something, I'm fine." Neil finished.

"Hey man, good to meet you." Kenny greeted him. Martin smiled at him, and moved over to join Edward and Allison.

"And our next contestant is Patrick." A young man waled down the gangplan at Chris's introduction. Dressed in a white button up shirt and red cardigan, he seemed just as out of place as Daniel.

"Psyched to be here, Chris." He high-fived the host. "And psyched to meet you all as well." He looked at the other campers, and stopped when he saw Stella tuning her guitar.

"Hey, sweet instrument. You any good?"

"Maybe." Stella brushed him off. "I've got enough skill to whip anyone in Battle of the Bands and be on my way."

"Nice. I sing, so I'm always interested in meeting someone new in the music world."

"I'm sure the holy man would love to hear your preppy choir-singing, but this is rock-and-roll, sweetheart." Stella returned to her guitar, while Patrick, sighing, turned around taking a seat on the dock.

"And next, we have Michelle." Chris introduced the next camper, a trim, beautiful girl with golden hair, and a belly-baring tight violet midriff shirt coupled with light pink hot pants.

"A pleasure, Chris." She traced her finger under his chin. "Mmmm, I do like a man with good introductions."

"Not bad at all, huh?" Chris smiled broadly as she moved towards the campers. She stopped at Martin, and smiled at him.

"You're certainly a charmer. I'll bet the girls just love those deep eyes." Martin started to smile as she played with his hair.

"Must...resist temptations." Martin said aloud while touching his crucifix.

"Oh, gave your heart to God? Well, love thy neighbor, right?" She walked away, and blew a kiss and winked towards Kenny.

"How do you get them to smile like that?" Tanya asked.

"It just happens, sugar. Why, you don't have any luck?" Michelle asked. Tanya shook her head. Michelle sat down beside her and started asking her questions about her technique as the next boat arrived.

"Everyone, meet Diana." The next contestant slid down the gangplank railing. Diana had red hair, a sullen expression, and wore a gray skullcap, an off-white skirt, and a jacket that appeared to have the sleeves cut off.

"So cheap. Where do you shop, Goodwill?" Jessica sneered at the newcomer.

"I clearly have more taste then your bling. And, word to the wise, your mascara makes you look like a drag queen. Oh wait, you are. Sorry." Jessica gasped in shock and revulsion, while the other campers smiled.

"Oh, I hope she's on my team!" Neil smiled. "Hey, there, I'm Neil. I'm looking for an assistant for my magic act." Diana chuckled at his response.

"You're either very direct, or very bad at picking girls up. I'll take a pass, Mr. Wizard, but give me a ticket to the show and I'll clap for you."

"I was just playing around." Neil responded. Diana looked like she was about to say something else before the next camper's boat sounded the horn to signal an arrival. From off the boat descended a man dressed in a flight jacket and crumpled grey fedora.

"All right, Nicolas. Welcome to camp." Chris greeted.

"This is gonna be sweet!" He responded. "Hey there, everyone! Nice to meet you all."

"Shoot, son, it's great to meet'cha!" Henry cheered.

"You...you look great." Amanda said. "That's a...vintage Air Force jacket."

"It is, it's my dad's. Wow, you got a great eye. And a great look too." Nicolas responded, causing Amanda to blush.

The next boat came to the dock swiftly, with the camper sitting on the very top of the boat, clinching onto the guard rail. He seemed garish, with his hair dyed completely silver, and screaming a loud scream of excitement as the boat roared in.

"And that is Jacob." Chris responded. Jacob didn't exit the boat via the gangplank. Instead, he leapt off the boat as it was still moving towards the dock. He lost his footing and crashed straight into a pile of luggage, causing an errant suitcase to strike Jessica from behind.

"Whoops, sorry about that. I got too excited. Too much fun on the roof of that boat, felt really good. Hey, is this the place we're staying at. That's wicked!"

"Well, good to see you made it. Just go over there, okay. Try not to destroy the dock until I get off it." Chris pushed Jacob away from him towards the other campers.

"Sure, no problem. Hey, everyone. I'm Jacob, but just call me Jake." Jake waved at the other campers, who gave a cacophony of responses. However, they were already focused on the next boat, in which heavy footsteps brought down the next camper. Dressed in combat boots and denim, and walking forcefully forward, she definitely seemed like a woman on a mission.

"Linda, good to see you." Chris responded. She glared at that host.

"Yes, indeed. I'm here, and not a minute too soon." Linda responded. "These are the competition? Well, hello everyone. I'm pretty sure the rules allow you to drop out and save me the trouble of beating you, so, feel free, okay."

"Heh. I'll pass on that, hon." Michelle responded. "If you want to win, it's going to be the real way."

"I expected as such. Thought I'd save you the trouble. But I've no qualms about winning the old-fashioned way." Linda smiled.

"Hey, at least she's up front about things." Nicolas mused to Shannon. She nodded.

"I'd take her over that Jessica girl." She admitted.

"Ingrid, welcome to camp." Chris greeted the next camper. Dressed in a black skirt and pink vest, she seemed almost young and girly when compared to the others.

"Hi, there." She waved to Chris and the other campers.

"Hi, I'm Jake. It's nice to meet you." Jake moved forward to shake her hand, but ended up stepping on her foot.

"Oops, sorry." At Jake's clumsiness, Ingrid merely put a large smile on her face.

"Oh, accidents happen. I'm sure you'll be more careful next time." As she moved away from Jake, however, she muttered that he would be the first to go.

"All right campers, please meet our final contestant, Greg." The last boat arrived, depositing this Greg, who had slicked back hair and a perpetual smile.

"Hey, there, Greg's my name. Nice to meet you all. How are ya doing today?" He spoke quickly.

"I'm Linda." Linda answered Greg.

"Linda, eh? Well, it's a pleasure. Gonna have a good time here. Gonna win the prize, of course, but that don't mean we can't be friends. Hey speaking of friends, we had this great old time with a bunch of friends where we snuck into the neighbors barn and tipped his cows. Cows give milk, and it makes me wonder who ever thought to first get milk from cows." Greg's brain raced a mile a minute and jumped from topic to topic near seamlessly.

"Okay, it seems like we've got all of our campers here." Chris spoke loudly to get all of the campers to listen to him.

"Everyone, meet by the campfire pit. I'll explain the rules for anyone who doesn't know, and divide you into your teams."

* * *

And the game will soon be afoot. Please, read and review, and let me know what you think of the characters or of the writing. If you are curious, yes, the winner and voting order have already been decided. However, feel free to guess the order in which the campers get voted off.


	2. Cliffside Capers

"All right, campers, I'm going to welcome you again to Camp Wawanawkwa. If you didn't watch last season, or read those contracts you sign, since people never seem to read those, I'll explain to you the rules. There are twenty-two of you campers here, and, every three days, one of you will be voted out. One vote a camper, with the camper getting the majority of the votes walking the Dock of Shame."

"Yeah, yeah, we all know the rules." Linda responded. "So, are we in teams or what?"

"Be patient, hon. Fretting about causes wrinkles." Michelle responded.

"You'll be divided into two teams of equal size." Chris continued, ignoring the outbursts. "Your teams will compete in challenges, and the losers will vote someone out. Now, if I call your name, stand over to one side; you'll be Team 1. Alright, then, first is going to be...Nicolas."

"Awesome!" Nicolas stood up and moved over to the cliffs so his team would know where to go.

"Next, we've got Allison, Kenny, Linda, Ingrid, Jake, Neil, Shannon, Diana, Henry, and Martin. All of you are going to be the Raging Eagles." Chris threw them a flag and bandanas embossed with an eagle motif.

"Isn't that great, Big Brother, we get to be on the same team!" Shannon cheered.

"That's...that's great, Shan." Kenny returned less enthusiastically.

"Yeehaw! We got some winners over here, right Linda!" Henry asked.

"Of course we do. No need to even point it out." She returned.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"This team is totally going to rock it." Linda confessed. "I could have had a lot worse choices. Now we start the real games.

* * *

"That means the rest of you: Bobby, Greg, Michelle, Edward, Jessica, Amanda, Patrick, Kelly, Tanya, Stella, and Daniel, are going to be the Thunderous Cobras!" Chris threw them a flag and bandanas with a snake on them.

"Hmmm...ski boy and the singer? Could be worse." Michelle said.

"At least I'm not with the freak who jumped off the boat." Jessica sighed.

"Hey, Stella, we're on the same team. I was wondering, see, I write some songs and..."

"I don't do bubblegum." Stella responded. "I only want to hear some real music."

"Before I send you to your cabins, I need to show you the confessional. Mention anything you want to the audience at home. Gripe, curse, complain, say whatever you want, they love this kind of backstabbing. After that, head to your cabins, drop off all your crap, and head to the mess hall."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This place is revolting." Jessica complained. "Only that money could make it remotely bearable. Not that I need it, Daddy's rich as a king. But you can never have too much money."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Okay, it's not that I don't like Shannon or anything, it's that she clings to me for everything. Whether it's kill a spider or whatever, she never does anything on her own when I'm around. I was hoping we wouldn't be on the same team." Kenny confided.

* * *

At the Eagles' cabin, the group started to divide up the beds.

"So, we're in agreement about girls on one side, and guys on the other." Ingrid stated as a command rather then a question.

"Scared of what you'll see?" Nicolas joked.

"Just keep your crap to your side of the cabin." She shouted.

"It's no big deal for me. I'll just make a hammock with the sheets and sleep outside." Jake nonchalantly dropped his bags and started to gather his sheets.

"Anyone else want to?" He offered.

"You sleep outside?" Linda asked.

"Oh yeah, all the time. Rain, snow, whatever, I leave my stuff indoors, but not me."

"That's real cool! We have a large ol' farm, so we were never inside 'less we needed to." Henry added. The two boys went outside to set a hammock up.

"Well, that seemed simple. If our team gets along, we'll do better at the team challenges." Linda smiled.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"It's really cool that our team gets along so well so fast." Jake confessed. "We're going to be in teams for who knows how long, but if we all get along, we'll do better in the team challenges. That'll be a great way to play the game and still make a lot of friends."

* * *

At the Cobras' cabin, however, things were far less harmonious.

"Detach these bunk beds!" Jessica said. "I'm not letting someone sleep under me."

"Who made you queen, Daddy? Well, Daddy ain't here, precious. So lump it." Edward responded.

"Hey, now, let's stop all the fussing." Greg responded. "It reminds me of this story way back, when people were feuding and..."

"Shut up!" Bobby returned. "Princess, if you want to separate the bunk beds, knock yourself out. But I'm not doing it for you, and no one else here is."

"Please, let's just...stop all the...fighting." Amanda pleaded. The rest of the campers had thrown down their luggage and left the cabin when Jessica started barking orders.

"This is going to go over swimmingly." Edward moaned, and moved to excuse himself, Amanda and Greg tagging along to leave Bobby and Jessica to feud.

"Who thinks they're making out?" Greg asked them. Edward scowled, but nodded.

* * *

In the mess hall, the campers sat at their tables.

"I saw this show last season, and the food was absolutely awful." Diana told her teammates. "I hope they hired a new..." She turned towards the kitchen, and her teammates could hear her heart sink. Standing in the back was the same chef from last season, scowling as he prepared a plate.

"Well, last season's campers didn't die, so that's a plus, right?" Kenny cracked. When Diana went up to get the plates, however, the food didn't seem that bad at all. It wasn't a plate of indistinct gruel which she expected, indeed, it looked like a plate of normal, if not overly great, food.

"Looks like TV dinner quality." Shannon remarked. "Does it taste good?" Diana speared a forkful of potatoes and placed it in her mouth. She started to chew it, but her eyes started to bulge and she had to force herself to swallow.

"That was either the taste, or you choked." Martin responded.

"I wasn't choking." Diana responded. The Eagles shared looks of revulsion.

"So, the food looks better, but doesn't taste better. Guess that's what the chef has been doing since the season ended."

"Next!" Chef ordered. After a period of slow eating and random vomiting, Chris entered the mess hall.

"So, how is the camp cuisine, Patrick?" He asked the camper closest to him.

"It tastes better when you throw up and swallow it." He returned.

"Hey, Patrick, I'll eat it for you. I mean, so you won't get sick." Tanya offered.

"Errr...no thanks, Tanya. Eat too much of this and you'll get sick. I'll just sneak it away in a napkin later." Tanya nodded, but seemed dejected.

"Hey, sweetie." Michelle put an arm around the girl and whispered to her quietly. "If you want a man to eat out of your hand, you can't pounce on him when he's sick. And don't look so down, he doesn't want you to get sick. That's good."

"But they won't know unless you're up-front."

"Suit yourself, sweetie. Just some advice, play it lightly."

"Alright, campers. I hope you've got a good meal." Chris announced, which caused most of the campers to glare at him. He ignored it.

"Your first challenge is about to begin. I'll announce the details soon enough. Just be prepared. It's the first episode, we're getting a lot of viewer ship, so I don't want to disappoint them." Chris turned to leave.

"Wonder what...the first challenge is?" Amanda wondered to her team.

"It could be a bunch of things. What we should really wonder about is what each of us can bring in a challenge. That way, we can adapt to it." Kelly returned.

"Can you do anything other then ski?" Jessica asked Daniel.

"Yes." Daniel returned. "What can you do?"

"Anything I want. That's what Daddy said."

"Yeah, but can you do anything well?" Daniel muttered to Michelle, who chuckled.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Man, that girl Jessica, it's like she can't do anything other then complain. If I hear anything more about her super-rich old man or how everyone here is unwashed filth or any of that other crap, I think I'm going to take a ski pole and shove it up her nose." Daniel ranted.

* * *

The first challenge site was at the beach, at the base of a large cliff next to the lake. The nature of the challenge wasn't entirely evident at first, but, when Neil saw the pile of pickaxes and pitons lying at Chris's feet, he figured they were in for a climbing excursion.

"All right, campers, here is your first challenge. We're standing at the base of a two hundred foot cliff. On the face of the cliff, you're going to find some flags."

"That doesn't look so high." Diana responded, pointing to an outcropping with a flag on it. "It's only, what, twenty, thirty feet?"

"Good eye. Getting that first flag is pretty easy. You just climb up, get it, and climb down. However, you're going to have to climb higher and higher for each flag you need to get, and there's going to be some hidden surprises that will make things harder and harder the higher you go. When you climb the cliff, you can take any flag you want, but once you pass a flag, you can't go back and get it. If you slip down the mountain past a flag, you're out. The team that collects the most flags is going to win invincibility, while the losers will be sending someone home. Eagles, you're up first."

"Okay, Eagles!" Linda spoke up immediately. "I think we should get the higher flags first. That way, we'll know what the surprises are beforehand so those of us who aren't strong at climbing will know what to expect."

"No." Kenny returned. "We should get some of the lower flags first. We have no idea what these surprises are, and they could be something that will affect the face of the cliff. If it makes getting the lower flags more difficult, we could lose."

"This looks like so much fun! I've climbed walls before in gym class, I don't mind going up as high as we can!" Nicolas volunteered.

"Shoot, son, I'll go up high too!" Henry responded. "I'm used to climbing up places!"

"God truly favors us to grant us such willing souls." Martin intoned. "However, temper it with sense. How many of you have actually scaled the face of a cliff?" He asked the others, none of whom answered in the affirmative.

"We should rank ourselves by bodily strength, endurance, and coordination." He finished.

"Good thinking, holy man." Diana patted him on the back, while he gruffly acknowledged her informality.

"I'll go first." Neil responded. "I've never been good at sports. I'll just get the first flag, and if I notice anything, I'll let you know." He hooked himself up to the cable and looked for the first handhold. He started his ascent slowly, Nicolas coaching him on how to properly move. Neil's ascent was patchy, but he managed to reach the first ledge and grabbed the flag.

"Oh yeah!" Shannon cheered their team's early victory as Neil rappelled down to the base.

"When I was moving, I heard a lot of wind coming from higher up. They might have turbines or something to make it windier up there." Neil reported. "Be careful." He sat down on the beach holding his flag.

"I'm next." Diana responded. "I'll aim for the middle. Just so we can get an idea of what it's supposed to be like up there before we get up to the really high ones." She took to the mountain quicker then Neil did, ascending past a few flags before she noticed a change. Like Neil had reported, the wind seemed a lot faster up there. There were noticeably less handholds and the ledges were shorter and quite precarious. There wasn't going to be much time to rest. If she waited on a ledge and it crumbled, not only could it cost her team a flag, but then no one else could use it, costing her team more. She felt her strength ebbing, so she moved towards the nearest flag. As she moved, however, the rocks started to feel damp under her hand. She strained her head upward to see a helicopter near the top of the cliff, spraying the rocks above with a water cannon. The resultant mud dripped down towards her.

"What the hell!" Diana was having a hard time keeping her grip on the slippery rocks. She attempted to move quickly towards the flag, but the rock she stood on crumbled under her weight, sending her down the mountain without a flag. She came down from the mountain gracefully, but, after reporting on the water cannon and the lack of handholds, she sat on the beach and said not a word to anyone else.

Martin moved over to console her, but Linda stopped him.

"Give her a minute. Women have their pride too." Linda smiled. "I'm going next, everyone." She immediately resumed her commanding tone. "I'm headed for the top. Don't worry, I can do this." She ascended the cliff with ferocity, passing flag after flag and headed straight for the top. As she got closer to the summit, she heard an explosion, and saw part of the cliff face explode into a cloud of dust and rock. Back at the summit, the other Eagles saw Chris holding a detonator.

"I did say there would be surprises, and that it would be harder. Man, I hope she's got a good grip!" He smiled as he pushed the detonator again. The Eagles turned back towards the cliff silently, knowing that Linda could not hear them so far up.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"That is completely insane!" Martin confessed. "Explosions? Of all the sadistic things to do."  


* * *

Back on the cliffside, Linda moved furiously. If her math was right, there were only two flags after the one she had just passed. She could see one, but the other seemed so far away it might as well have been on the Moon. She gritted her teeth and ascended diagonally, trying to get to a less slippery location. The explosions sounded closer, but she held her breath to avoid breathing in the dust and snagged the flag. As she descended from the mountain, the Eagles cheered rancorously at the dangerous feat.

"That...is very difficult. I don't recommend going for the summit if there is no need." Exhausted, she plopped down on the ground.

Henry tackled the cliffside next. He followed Linda's example of quick ascent and went about halfway up the mountain, successfully obtaining a flag. Nicolas eagerly went next, claiming that he would go for the summit. He climbed much slower then Linda did, making many more lateral movements specifically to avoid the areas where the explosions had been. He didn't reach the summit, instead settling for the flag just below Linda.

Ingrid opted to attempt the challenge next. She started at the challenge much like Linda, but when she got to the second flag, she immediately grabbed it instead of going higher.

"Why did you just do that?" Kenny asked. "You had great form and everything. What, were you scared?"

"My footing was bad." Ingrid responded. "It was better to just take the flag then lose. Don't we need to win?"

"We're not going to win playing wimpy like that." Kenny returned. "Just forget it, whatever. I'm next up the cliff." Kenny tackled the cliff like a pro, causing Nicolas to clap his hands in excitement. He quickly made his way straight towards the summit, not bothering to move laterally like Linda or Nicolas did. The water pummeled him and the explosives shook him up, but Kenny managed to ascend straight to the top and take the peak flag.

"That's my big brother! He's the greatest!" Shannon lead the cheering squad. Kenny leapt from the top of the cliff, screaming a cry of joy, as he landed straight in the lake. When he emerged from the lake, even the Cobras were cheering for him. All except for Ingrid, who glared at him, seething at the insults.

"That was so much fun! Okay, Shan-ban, you're up!" Kenny gestured towards his sister, whose face immediately went white.

"Oh...wow...that's...I can't do that, big brother."

"Shannon, you don't have to reach the summit." Kenny informed. "Just go up halfway and grab one of those flags. You can do it, just grab and pull. That's how I did it." Shannon looked at the mountain for a long time before pursing her lips and grabbing the rope.

"All right, big brother. I'm not as good as you, but I can do something, at least." Shannon was much slower then her brother in her ascent, but managed to grab one of the middle flags. As she landed on the ground following her descent, she opened her arms wide towards her brother for a hug. However, he made no motions towards her.

"Well done, Shannon." Kenny nodded in affirmation. "Just remember to always go for it as hard as you can."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Ever since we came here, Kenny's been very distant towards me. Maybe he's homesick? Don't see why. We're always together back home, and it's always the people, not the place, that's important. At least, that's what Kenny said." Shannon spoke to the camera.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"If Shannon keeps clinging to me, she's going to get set up for heartache. And I don't mean because this game is last man standing. She needs to stand on her own, and start believing in herself, and not just because I tell her that. I'm not going to betray her when the vote-outs come or anything, but I don't want her caving to me every chance she gets. Then she can't win at anything. This game, or at life." Kenny spoke to the camera.  


* * *

Jake attempted to climb the mountain, ascending up towards the middle of the mountain. He seemed to be taking his time in his ascent, pausing on the ledges. He scampered over towards a flag, but one of Chris's well-timed explosions destroyed the landing from under him, causing him to lose his balance and fail the challenge.

"What was with you?" Linda asked. "You moved so slowly. You could cost us!"

"Didn't you feel that wind?" Jake asked. "It felt so good."

"If you want to feel the wind on your face, jump off the cliff when we're done!" Linda screamed in frustration. Jake shrugged as he handed the rope to Allison, who, wordlessly, maneuvered to one of the lower flags and picked it up.

"Why pick up one of those?" Shannon asked. Allison gave no response, deciding to fiddle with her headphones instead. Shannon shouted again, causing Allison to huff.

"Didn't need to get a harder one. Didn't feel like it. No big deal." She tersely responded.

Martin was the final camper to ascend the cliff. All of the lower flags had been obtained already, and Martin would have to go higher up the mountain and contend with the explosives. He frowned, but started chanting a psalm to himself as he moved his way up the mountain. Although it was a slower climb, Martin successfully clinched a flag.

"We shall joyfully sing about your victory!" Martin intoned another psalm before sitting next to Diana, who had been staring at the lake the entire time, ignoring the competition.

"You got a flag? Good job, preach."

"And why are you so down. He did say..."

"Preach, stop the holy stuff. I get it, you like God. God's cool, God's great, but you can speak your own words too." Diana huffed and walked away from him. Martin sighed quietly as he too started to look glumly across the water.  


* * *

"Okay, so that's nine campers who completed the challenge. Cobras, you have to beat that to win." Chris instructed the Cobras. "Because you were able to see how the challenge works, and what the surprises are, we're going to add a little twist. You'll be doing the same thing, but you'll have to carry this twenty-pound pack on your back the entire time."

"You know, we could get spinal injuries from that." Edward returned.

"Yeah...well, good luck!" Chris brushed him off.

"I hate that guy." Edward returned. "Who is going to go first?"

"I am absolutely not doing this!" Jessica stuck her nose in the air. "Getting dirty and wet in these designer jeans? As if!"

"Figures the princess would chicken out." Kelly sighed.

"I'll go first." Daniel eagerly came forward. He ascended the cliffside about halfway up before grabbing a flag.

"That's great...just like that. I'll...go next." Amanda offered.

"Hey, don't overexert yourself." Daniel said. "That backpack is really heavy."

"I'll...try hard." Amanda ascended the cliff. She started fairly quickly, but slowed down just as fast. But she never stopped moving forward, reached the third flag and grabbed it.

"That was awesome!" Greg responded. "And so graceful too. You remind me of this pretty girl I dated way back..." He launched into a tale, but Michelle and Tanya moved in to save Amanda from another of Greg's long-winded pointless stories.

Amanda let Tanya attempt the challenge next.

"Watch me, Daniel! Wish me luck!" She practically begged as she went up.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"I'm watching Tanya on the other team, and man, that girl tries way too hard. It's cute when girls are assertive after you start dating, but before? It just looks desperate." Nicolas reported.  


* * *

Tanya climbed up the mountain, stopping every so often to wave to the boys below. She maneuvered her way past the first flags easily, and started to pass the middle ground easier. Rather then grab one of those flags, she decided to ascend towards the summit.

"She could actually do this. Well, that'll impress the boys. Keep it up, girl." Michelle praised. However, her praise came short, as the mud proved too slippery for her, and she slipped and tumbled down the cliffside. Jessica snidely chuckled, while Bobby rolled his eyes at her bravado. Truly, the idiot should have realized her own limitations.

Stella tackled the cliffside next, stating she would get one of the lower flags simply so the team could get another point. She climbed slowly, but successfully, and obtained a flag. Michelle followed, opting to reach the peak if she could. She moved much faster then Stella did, and managed to keep her balance and composure as she reached the flag third from the top.

"How did you do that?" Tanya wondered. "You are so cool."

"I'm a dancer." Michelle waved her fingers at Patrick. "I'm used to keeping my body as fluid as possible."

"You do dance? What kind of dance. My niece does dance, or she shakes her butt out of rhythm and calls it dancing. Want me to go next?" Greg, his thoughts in three different places at once, scaled the mountain, but only made it to the second flag before stopping.

"This is nothing. Dad told me what boot camp was like for him, and I can tackle this. I'm not stopping until I reach the peak!" Kelly removed her jacket and started to climb. The men couldn't help but stare. It had been hard to tell previously because of her outfit, but that girl was certainly well-built, her muscles slim and defined. She could reach the peak no problem.

As she went up the cliff, however, she ran into a hitch. The wind and mud didn't bother her, neither did the explosions. However, the pack that her team had to wear while climbing was starting to slip off of her shoulders. When the weight was distributed evenly, all was well, but clustered as it was, it was making things hard to move. Although Chris didn't mention it in the rules previously, she figured she'd be out the second it fell off her back. As much as the summit called for her, and much as she knew she could reach it, she had to settle for the flag second from the top. However, despite clinching her team a much needed point, and the cheers of all of the other campers, she came down the mountain with a large frown pursed on her face.

"What people will do for foolish pride or the chance of television. At least it'll be good exercise for me." Edward huffed as he went up the mountain, snatching one of the lower flags, not wanting to waste the effort. Bobby opted to go next. Although one of the explosions had knocked him down the mountain, he was able to stop himself from slipping too far with a well placed piton. He successfully clinched a flag in the middle of the mountain.

"Okay, so that leaves two campers. Patrick, and Jessica..." Chris trailed off as Jessica turned her back on him.

"Alright, Patrick, it's down to you. The closest flag is a little more then halfway up the mountain." Chris reported to him.

"That'll just give us a tie. What's the tie-breaker?"

"Why don't we make things a little more interesting. Patrick, if you can get the flag I mentioned, we'll do a tiebreaker. However, if you can reach the summit and get the flag there, I'll instantly declare the Cobras the winners. But, if you try for the top and screw it up, the Eagles will get a wickedly awesome reward to make their lives here at camp much less annoying. Choose wisely."

"What should we do?" Patrick wondered to his team. "I think I should play it safe."

"What kind of man are you?" Jessica sneered. "Go for the gold."

"Hey, royal pain, no one asked you." Stella returned. "Do whatever you want. How bad could the tiebreaker be?"

"It's not something we can chance. Not with army brat and the clingy girl distracted and the Blue Blood Bitch not doing anything that isn't getting a facial." Bobby returned. "Patrick, you're going for the top, and that's that."

Patrick frowned as he made his way up the cliff. Climbing towards the first flag to make the tie-breaker was fairly simple. He briefly considered grabbing it, but decided against it. As much as he didn't want to admit it, Bobby was right. Whatever the tie-breaker was, Jessica would probably not do it. With Kelly distracted by her inability to reach the summit, a strong player was out of commission, while they still had Kenny, Linda, and Nicolas. He had no real choice but to keep climbing.

It was certainly difficult. Although his pack wasn't slipping off his back like Kelly, he certainly had never climbed rocks like this before. With the mud, and the imminent threat of explosion, he was having a very difficult time staying focused. He had been singing a song as he climbed earlier to help him focus. But the dust was getting in his mouth and now he could no longer do that. He moved up past where Michelle and Kelly had obtained their flags, and maneuvered his way towards the summit. Patrick smiled as he saw the peak get closer and closer towards him. However, his expression soon turned to worry as the rope holding him up started to fray. There was no way he could reach the peak before it snapped. He slammed a piton into the wall and, when the rope broke, he was able to grab it and prevent himself from plummeting to the ground. He made a motion to a nearby camera, and the helicopter spraying the cliff flew in for Patrick to board.

When he reached the bottom of the cliff, the Eagles were ecstatic about their victory, but Nicolas expressed sympathy for Patrick's plight, having watched the rope snap after Patrick boarded the chopper. However, among the Cobras, there wasn't as much kindness.

"You blew it!" Jessica screamed. "You total idiot."

"Why didn't you just go for the lower flag." Edward added. "Safety before pride."

"Hey, Princess, why don't you climb the cliff and get a flag?" Patrick retaliated. "Then we could've won."

"Please, I have more dignity then you attention-starved saps." Jessica returned.

"Lay off him, prima donna!" Stella defended. "He made it further then any of us."

"I hope that reward isn't too much." Michelle said silently.

"And the winners of the first round are the Raging Eagles. Well done, guys. As promised, you're going to get a reward. We're going to cover your beds with mosquito netting and place a bug zapper at your cabin so you can get a cozy night sleep without getting harvested by those little vermin." Chris informed a crowd of Eagles, who smiled at their reward.

"We'll probably appreciate it more tomorrow when the Cobras are covered in bug bites." Jake responded. "Wonder if I can use it around my hammock?"

"Alright, then, so Eagles, enjoy yourselves and relax, you're all safe tonight. As for the Cobras, tonight is the first campfire ceremony, and one of you will be going home. So, choose your loser and see if you can send 'em packing."

Back at the Cobra cabin, the air was tense. Amanda attempted to defuse the situation by speaking to Michelle and Tanya about hairstyles that might complement their looks better. However, Jessica was more interested in criticizing Patrick's failure to complete the challenge, speaking to practically everyone about how it would be better to get rid of someone who couldn't perform. Patrick himself was very quiet, sitting on his bed with a notebook, attempting to write a song.

"Yo." Bobby called over to Patrick. "You're going to let Jessica mouth off like that? You could get the axe?"

"I figure she'll vote herself off. We were all there when she didn't even try. Everyone else will get so annoyed with her they'll just kick her off." He responded. Bobby looked at him quizzically for a moment, but then started to laugh.

"Heh, you're pretty smart. Kinda meek, but smart. Let's say we smart guys team up." Bobby offered.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"If Patrick was able to figure Jessica out that quickly, then I'd rather keep him close then push him away. I know he's got a thing for Stella, so if I can get the three of us going in an alliance, we can keep ourselves safe at voting when our teams merge. After that, I can break the ranks and get them voted off and win. That's how this game is won, by playing it early." Bobby confided.  


* * *

"Let's discuss it after the campfire tonight." Patrick returned. "We should see if I'm right."

"Suit yourself." Bobby returned.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"He's kind of careful. It might be a better idea to get rid of him." Bobby confessed  


* * *

After a particularly rancid dinner courtesy of Chef, the Cobras were seated at the campfire pit.

"Welcome, Cobras, to the first campfire ceremony of the second season of Total Drama Island. I'm holding ten marshmallows on this plate. You have all cast your votes and made your decisions on who you want to vote off. When I call your name, come up, and get a marshmallow, because it means that you are safe to fight another day." Chris introduced the ceremony. "If I do not call your name, you are eliminated. You will walk the Dock of Shame, board the Boat of Losers, and you can't come back. Ever. So, come up when I call you. First up, Michelle." Chris beckoned to her, and Michelle walked over to the plate and grabbed the first one.

"Edward, Bobby, Stella, and Amanda, you're all safe too." The next cluster of campers clambered up to get their prizes. They grouped together on the far side, some chatting mindlessly, while others were fixated on the rest of the campers who hadn't received marshmallows yet.

"Kelly and Greg, well done today. Come up and get your marshmallows." Kelly smiled as she walked up, while Greg cheered loudly as he claimed his. They went over to the other campers, while those remaining without marshmallows started to get a little nervous. Tanya chewed her fingernails and Patrick started clenching his fists.

"Daniel." Chris announced, and an exuberant Daniel breathed a sigh of relief as he claimed his marshmallow.

"Campers, there are only two marshmallows left. And you three did not complete the challenge earlier. Can't say I'm totally surprised to see the three of you here."

"Come on, just boot Patrick. This is getting boring!" Jessica pouted.

"Cram it, cupcake. You'll get axed soon enough." Patrick replied.

"Stop all the fighting, please!" Tanya pleaded.

"No, let 'em fight. Audience loves that kind of trashy drama." Chris cheered. "Tanya, you're safe, so let them go at it a while." It took Tanya a second to realize that she was safe, but she quickly retrieved her marshmallow and went over towards Greg.

"This is the last marshmallow remaining. Jessica or Patrick, one of you is going to be out tonight." Chris raised his finger to point to the winner. Jessica sighed, bored with waiting to hear that Patrick would be kicked off, while Patrick's earlier fear was replaced with a scowl towards Jessica. He anticipated her being removed from the show. As such, when Chris started to tease the campers by moving his finger between them, they barely acknowledged it.

"You two are the biggest...okay, fine, whatever. Patrick, you're safe. Jessica, you're out."

"Excuse me!" Jessica screamed while Patrick went to claim his marshmallow. "You kept this reject! Weren't you listening to what I said."

"Oh, we listened." Michelle returned. "And we still voted you out. Get lost!"

"Michelle...that was great." Amanda cheered.

"We kept Patrick instead of you, so get off of our island." Stella returned.

"I'm so out of here! Daddy will take care of you freaks." Jessica walked off the island.

"And that's that, then. Cobras, you're all safe...for tonight." Chris departed from the campfire pit, leaving the Cobras to cheer one last time at Jessica's departure before heading back to their cabin.

_Votes_

**Jessica: **Amanda, Daniel, Edward, Greg, Kelly, Michelle, Patrick, Stella, Tanya

**Patrick: **Bobby, Jessica


	3. A Walk on the Dark Side

_"Last time on Total Drama Island. The campers all arrived. They saw the camp, and met each other, and sparks flew as soon as they met. Their very first challenge showed us who would deliver, and who would fall. In the end, the Thunderous Cobras lost the first challenge, sending them to the chopping block. The final two were down to Jessica and Patrick, both of whom didn't complete the challenge. But snobby Jessica, with her elitist attitude and not even attempting the challenge, was sent home first. Will the Raging Eagles go for two in a row, or will they get sidetracked away from victory lane? Find out on tonight's episode of Total...Drama...Island."_

The Cobras started their trek back from the campfire pit to their cabin. Despite having lost one of their number, they were in good spirits. Amanda and Greg were singing an old camp tune together, while the rest just walked in silence and occasionally listened. It wasn't until they saw the Eagles's cabin, with mosquito netting, that they felt a little bad.

"We did lose today." Stella echoed everyone's thoughts. "So, can we win tomorrow?"

"Totally." Patrick supported. "We're so gonna win tomorrow. Without Jessica holding us back, we can totally rock out at this next challenge."

"Better hope so." Bobby dared. "Because if we don't, we're still remembering how you didn't complete that first challenge."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I figure that if I keep the pressure on Patrick, he'll come back to me begging to be in an alliance with him. He's approaching things apprehensively, so he'll think people other then Jessica voted for him, even if they didn't. That's exactly what I'm hoping for." Bobby confessed.

* * *

The next day, most of the Eagles woke up early and much refreshed. Linda started out her day with a vigorous exercise routine, pausing it only slightly to allow Henry to join her. Shannon looked at them strangely, as if the idea of doing such things in the morning was unfathomable.

"Shannon, you can join us if you want." Linda offered, noticing her looks.

"Yeah, hon, c'mon. We Eagles take care of each other." Henry offered. Shannon smiled, and agreed to join them. When Kenny awoke about twenty minutes later, he smiled at the sight before going to take a shower.

* * *

"Is it just me, or is Chef getting worse at cooking?" Diana looked at her plate of burnt eggs and toast.

"I'm pretty sure this isn't safe to eat." Nicolas noted. "We might be better off foraging for edible mushrooms outside."

Greg didn't share the sentiments of the other campers. He eagerly scarfed down the nauseating food. As he did, the other campers started staring at him.

"What? You want to hear what bad food really is. Well, it all started when my mom decided she could cook a family dinner for the four of us. That's me, her, and my big brother. Now, I love my mom, but she does not know how to cook. She made white rice, and somehow it ended up green, to say nothing of her casseroles. If I stomached that and didn't die, well, how bad could this stuff be?" Greg spoke quickly.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I think that Greg guy is nuts. He can't stop talking, he never has a straight thought, and I bet half the crap he says isn't remotely true." Bobby intoned. "He'd make a good meatshield for an alliance, someone we can ditch as soon as the alliance goes our way so we look like we're all playing nice, but he's too annoying."

* * *

"Okay, campers, hope you're ready for your next challenge, because it starts in 5 minutes." Chris returned. They followed him outside, eager to be rid of that disgusting excuse for a meal.

"Campers, we're in the woods, and this is a survival contest. Your next task is a simple one at first, but it's going to test your endurance, your strength, and your ability to think creatively. You'll be hiking for five miles." Chris delivered the next challenge.

"I can deal with that." Jake chimed.

"You'll be doing this as a team. You'll be following a path, but it's not going to be a straight run, there's going to be quite a few obstacles to get across. You'll be given a few supplies to help you, but ultimately you're going to have to think of the right thing to do, so don't do anything stupid. Or, if you do, make sure the cameras are on , so get all situated and ready, and go out and have some fun!"

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Okay, here's what I didn't tell the campers. If they think the challenge is just a race, and the first one to the finish line wins, they are wrong. Along the way down the trail, I've had some of my interns place some coins. They're all hidden in plain sight, but it's pretty easy to walk right past. The winner is going to be the team that gets the most. The looks on their faces will be worth all of the interns we lost getting those coins in place." Chris confessed.

* * *

The Eagles took an early lead, marching with Linda in the lead. The team quickly fell in order and walked single file behind each other. Although Kelly attempted to do something similar with the Cobras, Greg and Michelle simply wouldn't follow it; Greg would be distracted by any woodland creature that came along, and Michelle would stop randomly to stretch and flirt. .

"They're going to beat us and we're going to lose. Again! Greg, you're going to cost us the game!" She shrieked.

"Chill out, hon. You'll just fret and give yourself wrinkles. If they just keep walking, they're going to miss what's really important. Hey, look, free cash! See what I mean?" Greg started to talk to Kelly, but immediately became distracted by a shiny gold-colored coin suspended from a tree branch.

"Hey, I wonder if this is..." Greg bit into the coin, completely ignoring his annoyed teammates.

"Owww...it's not real. It's a fake coin. What's the point of this thing." Greg rubbed his mouth as he removed the coin. He appeared ready to toss it into the cover when Amanda grabbed his arm.

"Please wait." She pleaded. "I...think it's important. They don't...hang coins from trees normally."

"Okay, never could turn down the request of a pretty lady. Here, 'manda, you hold it." He handed her the coin cheerfully.

"Hey, you don't ever listen to me." Kelly retorted.

"You, Kelly, are gorgeous, not pretty. Gotta know the difference. It's like the difference between hot and cute..." Greg started into a speech about the differences in terms describing beauty, but the others kept moving forward and ignoring him.

* * *

The Eagles, far ahead of the Cobras, had come to their first obstacle. The path they had been following simply dropped into a river, with twenty feet towards the other bank. There was no bridge to see, and swimming across, because of how far below the river was and of its swift current, wasn't an option.

"How are we supposed to get across?" Allison asked. "We can't jump."

"Yes we can!" Jake cheered. "We'll just jump from the trees!"

"Uhh, Jake, the only tree that reaches out doesn't go very far." Kenny looked cautiously. A tree branch extended across the river a few feet, but that jump would still be impossible.

"I can do it with a running start."

"In a tree? Isn't that just a little, well, crazy? Besides, how will the rest of us get across. I'm sure Allison and Ingrid can't make something like that." Kenny puzzled. Ingrid growled at the mention of her name in such a fashion.

"What supplies do we have?" Jake turned to Linda. She looked at the bundle Chris had given her team.

"We have some rope, a knife, and a first-aid kit." She responded.

"Perfect. Tie the rope around my waist." Jake asked. Linda seemed taken aback, but acquiesced. Jake climbed up the tree and tied the other end to the tree.

"Not bad." Linda said as Jake prepared to run across the branch.

"Huh?" Shannon asked.

"He's secured himself to the tree so he won't get swept away if he misses. When he reaches the other side, he can tie the rope to another tree so we can cross hand-over-hand. Only problem is, we either leave the rope so the other team can use it, or we cut it, but then, we can't use it again. There might be a better way to do this..."

"We don't have that kind of time." Shannon returned. "We don't know how much further the other team is behind us."

"I suppose." Linda returned. They returned to watching Jake run at breakneck speed across the tree branch and leap. He flew across to the other side, and only barely managed to make it. The Eagles cheered as Jake tied the rope around a nearby tree branch. The Eagles crossed one at a time. Surprisingly, they hadn't seen the Cobras come up as they crossed. Before deciding what to do, Linda immediately severed the rope with the knife.

"Take the part on our side with us. We might be able to use it later." She responded as the Eagles went back into formation and starting marching.  


* * *

When the Cobras reached the river, their attitude was much less serious.

"Whoa, that river looks super-swift. I wanna swim in it!" Greg exclaimed.

"No!" Bobby shouted. "We're already behind and we're not losing again because you want a little dip!"

"The other team's not here." Michelle responded. "How did they get across."

"There's a rope in the tree. They must have used it." Kelly pointed.

"We use...that then." Amanda responded.

"No, we don't." Edward returned. "We're behind, we need ours for an advantage later on. If their rope is there, we need to keep ours for an advantage."

"So what'll we do, smarmy. All you've done since we got here is mouth off." Bobby blasted.

"You're one to talk." Edward rolled his eyes. "But if you want my help that badly, all you need do is ask. We could probably swing across using their broken rope. Might be difficult, though."

"Well, someone can push." Kelly jumped on Edward's thought. "If we have our strongest player push the others, they might be able to get across. To be safe, the first person to go should be someone who can jump across at the apex of the swing. After that, another of our strong players will push everyone and the person already on the other side will help them get across. Then, the last person across can jump. Who's going to volunteer?"

"I guess it should be me." Patrick responded. "I made it the furthest on the cliff."

"Fat lot of good that did." Bobby asided. Patrick ignored him and grabbed the rope. With a running start, he was able to swing across the cliff.

"Alright, so I'll stay on this side." Kelly offered, and passed the rope to Amanda. It took a fair amount of time, but all of the Cobras managed to get across safely.

"Well, that was fun." Greg responded. "And hey, look, reward! There's another of those shiny coins lying on that rock."

"Now I'm sure they mean something. Greg, keep your eyes open for those things." Michelle responded. "I'm sure you can concentrate if you're looking for shiny objects." She joked, but Greg nodded eagerly as if he didn't get the sarcasm, or he did get it and chose to ignore it.  


* * *

While the Cobras lagged behind, the Eagles were making great time. They had already reached the second obstacle, a large, featureless brick wall.

"What kind of cheap movie props are these?" Ingrid asked.

"Didn't do good on the wall climb as a kid?" Diana teased.

"That's going to be hard to climb without our rope. I could do it, though." Nicolas, without even being asked, started to scale the wall.

"Are you used to breaking and entering or something?" Diana asked.

"I've climbed walls before." Nicolas responded. "Why do you think I did so well last time on that cliff? Alright, so, how is everyone else getting up here? There isn't anything up here that'll help, and it's too high for me to haul you up."

"We could make a human ladder. Nicolas, come back down. You and Kenny will create a ladder so we can all get across. After that, one of us hangs down so Kenny can climb up. After that, Nicolas scales the wall again. Simple. Now let's move, everyone!" Linda immediately barked out an order, and the Eagles followed her plans.

"Hey, take a look." When Shannon scaled the wall, she noticed something sitting on top. She showed Linda what she had found. It appeared to be some sort of coin, but it was clearly valueless.

"Money? If you want money, look for the top prize. That's not even a real coin anyway. Probably something one of the crew dropped when they set the wall up. No need to pay it further thought." Linda responded as she jumped down from the wall on the other side, ignoring the coin entirely.

"Hey, hey! I see the Cobras! They're gaining on us." Jake shouted.

"Then, God willing, we'll move fast enough." Martin responded. "Hustle it!" He griped the wall and held on tight as Kenny climbed up him like a ladder. Nicolas started scaling the wall just as the first few Cobras started coming."

"Good luck and farewell!" Nicolas shouted to the Cobras. "Don't try to climb up here just yet, cause I'll push you off." He waited until the Eagles had jumped on the other side and were all ready to move before jumping off the other side.  


* * *

"Come on, we've got no time to waste." Michelle saw Nicolas up the wall, and now the Eagles were going to get ahead.

"We're making good progress." Stella said to her teammates. "Let's just rock out and get up that wall."

"We shouldn't do things their way. They cost themselves a lot of time doing whatever it was. They'll just pull further ahead. We need a new strategy." Patrick returned.

"There aren't any trees to jump from." Patrick returned. "At least, none that we could climb from."

"You guys think too direct." Greg returned. "Watch this!" Greg turned around and went backwards towards a tree that could be climbed. He leapt from there to a tree closer to the wall. The trunks of the trees closer to the wall were not suitable for climbing, but they still had branches, and Greg maneuvered from the branches to jump over the wall.

"It's good. Just follow my path. Be careful, though, the drop's a long one." He shouted from on the other side of the wall. The Cobras agreed, and started to follow his path. It was a lot quicker then scaling the wall, but the drop was a lot tougher. Amanda nearly sprained her ankle when she dropped down.

"Aah!" She cried out. Without a word, Edward moved over to her and looked at her ankle, the first-aid kit in hand.

"It doesn't look too bad. Uncomfortable, but nothing broken. Go on, guys, we can catch up."

"We're going to lose so much time." Bobby said gruffly

"And we'll lose more if Amanda cannot walk properly." Edward returned. "Remember, the last one crosses the finish line is when it's over. I'm not sure how much distance we have left, but we can't carry Amanda the whole way." Bobby sighed, and the Cobras started to move.

"You...thanks." Amanda said as Edward treated her wound once she was alone.

"No big deal. This is what I know." He didn't look at her as he spoke, focusing on the bandage.

"Are you...going to be a doctor?"

"Eventually. But, Amanda, there's no need to hesitate. Ask me confidently. What are you so worried about that you need to choose your words so carefully." Amanda said nothing further, but she smiled at Edward as he helped her up.  


* * *

The Eagles, hustling to put some distance between the Cobras and themselves, came to the next obstacle, a rickety old bridge spanning a deep gorge. The bridge wasn't very long, but it's condition made them forget about the short distance.

"I don't trust this thing." Diana looked nervous. "What do you think, holy man?"

"Strange that you come to me over Nicolas. Is he not the adventure-stricken one?" Martin returned.

"Just wanted to see if you'd quote the good book or not. I'm satisfied." She teased.

"Those wires are really thin." Nicolas surveyed the bridge. "But the wood looks in worse shape. I definitely don't recommend walking on it. "

"So, what's the plan?" Linda asked to no one in particular.

"No roundabout way to handle this." Neil responded. "We're going to need to do something with this bridge. If the wires are in better shape, why don't we cross on those?"

"I don't think any of us are tightrope walkers." Diana returned.

"No, I mean with our hands on the top rope, we edge along on the bottom one. We'll need the bridge a little for balance, but we can probably cross that way and not worry about the condition of the bridge." Neil demonstrated what he discussed, and managed to cross the bridge with no problems. The Eagles followed suited. The bridge swayed in the wind, but did not give way, as the team slowly crossed it. When they reached the other side, Linda took out the survival knife and severed the top guard wires. Now, anyone crossing the bridge would not have something to hold onto.

"No rule against that. Now, the Cobras will be stuck on the other side." She replied.

"God praises creativity, but not falsehood or endangerment. I do not approve." Martin scowled, but Linda ignored him as she started to move on.  


* * *

When the Cobras reached the bridge, they were disheartened. They quickly realized that the guard wires had been cut, but could do nothing about it. Now the rickety bridge was even less safe to cross without something to hold on to.

"Well, does anyone have any ideas?" Kelly asked.

"Someone light and with a good balance might be able to get to the other side. But us bigger guys might have a problem." Daniel sighed.

"If we only had some support, something we could lean on and not put so much weight on the bridge, we should be able to get across." Stella looked at the other side. Although the guard wires were severed, the anchoring points that held them looked fine. Immediately, her face lit up.

"Why not use the rope?" She said. "Who here is the lightest?"

"Me." Michelle responded.

"Cross the bridge holding one end of the rope, we'll tie it to the other side here. Then, you tie it to the other side, and voila, a guard wire. Rock out!"

"That's excellent, Stella." Patrick cheered. Michelle didn't seem so thrilled, but made her way across the bridge. Many of the planks collapsed even under her light weight, but enough of them held for her to make it across. Afterwards, it was a simple enough matter of tying the rope and waiting for the Cobras to come across. As she waited, Michelle noticed another coin jammed into the anchoring point of the bridge. Once Kelly came across, it was simple enough to remove with the knife.

"What do you think these coins are for?" Michelle asked Greg, who seemed the most enthusiastic about finding them.

"Maybe we can trade them in for extra supplies at another obstacle?" He wondered. "On these types of shows, what can you expect?" He wondered how many coins the Eagles had found. Probably not much, since these coins were fairly easy to find. But, then again, maybe they were picking up different colored coins or something. Or maybe they thought the coins were a distraction. But neither thought lasted long enough in Greg's head for him to voice them aloud.  


* * *

"We're almost there." Linda responded. "We just have another half mile." The Eagles were moving fast thanks to their rigid focus and formation. There seemed to only be one more obstacle to go. However, this one seemed a lot less forgiving then the others. The path had been overtaken by thick undergrowth, covered in thorns. It wasn't sturdy enough to walk on top, and the thick brambles made wading through it not an option.

"Can we cut through it?" Neil wondered.

"Brilliant idea." Allison rolled her eyes. "That would take too long. We need a fast solution."

"What's in the first aid kit? We really haven't looked in that." Shannon and Diana opened it up.

"Nothing out of the ordinary. Gauze, needles, alcohol. Hey, look, a matchbook. Are there normally matches in a first-aid kit" Diana returned. Shannon shook her head. Maybe they were placed for the challenge.

"Well, Mama used to have a saying about bad weeds like this. We had a patch of nothing but weeds once back at the farm, that was eventually gonna interfere with the harvest, so we burned 'em. Stopped any embers from burning the crops, but that did the trick. Then we dug out the roots and that was that."

"That'll work." Linda returned. "Soak the bushes in alcohol and light em up." The team did so, and were amazed by how well it burned. It did take a while for the brush to burn enough to be considered passable, and, when it was, Linda could see the Cobras making progress towards them.

"We gotta hurry!" She nearly pushed everyone across the burned remains of the brush, and went into a dead-on sprint to reach the finish line. The Cobras, completely aware they would have no chance of winning with Amanda's injury, walked much more slowly across the brush.  


* * *

Once all of the teammates had reached the clearing, Chris called an end to the competition.

"Okay, so that's the end. The Eagles made it here with all of their campers first. Cobras, what happened?"

"Well." Kelly stepped up to explain. "There were a lot of problems. Amanda had a foot injury, Greg kept being distracted by shiny things, and Edward and Bobby wouldn't stop arguing. It was a whole bunch of things that kept us behind."

"Shiny things?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, Greg saw a bunch of fake gold-colored coins, and he kept picking them up. Some of them were a bit out of the way."

"Wow, distracted by shiny stuff. That's pretty sad. Eagles, did you find any coins?"

"We saw a few, but we didn't bother with them." Linda answered

"Well, that's sad. Greg, how many did you find."

"Amanda has them, but I think maybe 5 or 6 over the course."

"Well, then, that means the Cobras are the winners!"

"What!" Linda exclaimed. "But we got here first!"

"That's true, but that wasn't the point of this hike. I put those coins there to see who would collect the most. I never did say it was a race, only that you'd be against each other." Chris smirked.  


* * *

The Eagles walked, crushed, to their cabin. The defeat was eating away at all of them. Crushed by a technicality, of all things.

"So, who are we going to vote out?" Diana asked Neil and Kenny.

"Linda." Neil responded. "She cost us this challenge."

"No way." Kenny responded. "At least she's strong and useful. I say we boot out Allison cause she's lazy, or Ingrid. She's totally selfish." Just then, Ingrid showed up, holding a pie in her hand.

"Hi, everyone." Ingrid was eager, smiling, and seemed almost genuinely happy to see them. "After we lost, I went to the tuck shop and bought us a pie. I figure we need to get our spirits up or we'll just lose again. Perk up, everyone. Elimination is sad, but another day, another challenge. We can still win more." Diana and Neil eagerly accepted a piece of the pie, thanking Ingrid for her generosity. She turned towards Kenny, who refused.

"Kenny? Not an fan of Dutch apple?" She asked with a smile. Kenny hesitated, but thanked Ingrid and took a slice. Ingrid grinned devilishly once she turned around to find a few of the girls to share in her treat.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"All according to plan. Get them all to like me before the vote. Whoever goes, it's not me. Kenny might be a problem though. He seemed hesitant. I might need to step my game up next time. Or boot him out. Not tonight, though. No one will boot him tonight. But soon, I'll make sure he's no threat to me."  


* * *

The campfire ceremony was tense. Unlike the Cobras, the Eagles got along fairly well with each other. Most of the faces of the group were frowns.

"Eagles, this is your first campfire ceremony. Here on this plate, I have ten marshmallows. If I call your name, come up and claim one, for you are safe. If I do not call your name, you are out, and most walk the Dock of Shame, and board the Boat of Losers. Once you leave, you can't come back. Ever. The first marshmallow goes to Kenny." Eagerly, Kenny stood up to claim his prize, while Shannon cheered.

"Next, Diana." Chris gestured to the grungy girl, who grabbed and ate her marshmallow almost immediately.

"Nicolas and Shannon, you two are safe." Nicolas grabbed his prize, while Shannon followed slowly, standing next to her big brother.

"Hardly a surprise." He told her. "Just keep it going and you'll do fine."

"Next fluffy bit of safety goes to Henry." The cowboy let out a rancorous "yee-haw!" as he heard his name called.

"Martin, you're safe too." The host held up another marshmallow for the preacher, who clasped his hands in prayer first before going up to get his marshmallow. Diana smiled privately, happy for his success.

"Allison." The girl with the headphones had to be elbowed to notice that she was safe, but went and got her prize without complaint.

"Jake." The wild child claimed his prize with a cheer and devoured the marshmallow the second it came into this hand.

"Eeww, table manners." Chris said.

"We're not at a table." Jake responded, his mouth still full of marshmallow. With a loud swallow, he walked off to join his team.

"Neil." Chris announced. The magician walked up without a sound, grabbed his marshmallow. He stared at it for a time and went over to his team, showing them a trick to make it disappear.

"Campers, this is the final marshmallow. Ingrid and Linda, one of you will be out of the competition." Linda seemed extremely nervous to have not been called, while Ingrid just sat there with a smile on her face. Chris held up the marshmallow and dangled it a little before them, causing Linda to nearly faint.

"Ingrid, you're safe. Linda, you're out of the game."

"Im...possible!" Linda dejectedly screamed while Ingrid happily bounced up and took her marshmallow.

"That's the way the cookie crumbles. Bye Linda!" Ingrid said without a hint of remorse. The rest of the Eagles, however, looked sadder. Kenny furrowed his brow.  


* * *

_Confession Cam  
_"My team can't possibly be that stupid, could they? I mean, they were suckered in by pie! I know that me and Shan-ban didn't vote her out. Maybe we just didn't have a plan of attack against Ingrid. Well, that's my mistake. I won't forget it next time." Kenny confessed.  


* * *

"Alright, Eagles, that's the end of the bonfire ceremony. Head back to your cabin, because you are all safe tonight." Chris saw the Eagles off as Linda walked her way towards the dock and boarded the boat. Kenny waved a silent goodbye to her as she slowly went out of sight.

_Votes_

**Linda:** Allison, Diana, Ingrid, Jake, Martin, Neil

**Ingrid: **Kenny, Nicolas, Shannon

**Allison: **Henry, Linda


	4. Decathalon of Doom

_"Last time, on Total Drama Island. The campers had to hike through the woods and overcome treacherous obstacles. There were tears, injuries, fire, everything that makes an outdoor trek fun. Greg's easily distracted nature caused him to discover the secret twist of the challenge, while Linda's rigid focus cost her team the challenge and her place on the island. Will Kenny and Ingrid come to another feud? Will there be any more alliance formations? Will someone go to the cleaners and get my shirts pressed? Find out tonight on Total... Drama... Island."  


* * *

_

"Campers." Chris had assembled the campers bright and early to start them on their next challenge. "Today's challenge is a head-to-head event, or should I say, events. We're going to see just how well you perform as individuals and as teammates, and see who here can make the biggest mistakes under pressure. This week, we're going to have the tried and true classic of a summer camp, the Field Day Decathalon."

"Field Day? Didn't we stop having those in middle school?" Diana sighed.

"Oh, I'm stoked, ya'll!" Henry shouted. "Bring on the challenges, Chris. What're we going to do."

"Easy, there. You'll get a list of events after brekky. But here's the important thing. You will not be choosing who does which challenge. Instead, you'll be choosing who on your opponent's team will participate. There are 10 events and 10 campers on each team, so no camper will repeat an event. Most events won wins. Savvy? Alright, go ahead and eat."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"We get to choose the opponents?" Martin confessed. "Must we really humiliate the other team for such advantages? Choosing our strongest members sits well with me, but the weakest?"

* * *

"Has anyone here ever done a decathlon?" Nicolas asked once the Eagles were huddled around their mess hall table.

"I have. They're usually split over two days. Half of the events are usually sprinting, fast-paced ones, and the others are slower ones that are more endurance-based. So I'm guessing we're going to have all sorts of different events." Kenny responded.

"That's going to be tough to choose. I mean, the only time we've really seen each other in action is in the cliff challenge. We were so far ahead during the hike." Shannon furrowed her brow and started to think.

"Man, I wish we had Linda. She could do any challenge like this well." Kenny frowned.

"Get over it." Ingrid responded. "She screwed up the challenge and it cost her. Besides, rigid focus like that will cause her to miss the challenge twists, and that's all these shows do. So let's just think about who to put in what event so they can screw up and we can win again."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Kenny is definitely a threat to me. I know that he and Shannon were the ones who tried to get me booted over Linda. They're going to be my next targets. I can't move today, two losses in a row gives us a huge disadvantage. But before the team merge, both of them will be toast." Ingrid confided.

* * *

At the Cobras table, Bobby was immediately delineating who he thought would be strong and weak.

"It's important that we know who is strong and who is weak so that, if there's an event we have no chance of winning, we can just chuck one of the Eagles's strongest members there. We need to capitalize on our hidden strengths. Patrick, that's probably going to be you."

"Me?" He replied.

"You managed to make it further than any of us on the cliff. But they won't think that, you didn't actually win the challenge. So we can use you to our greatest advantage."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"Bobby praising me?" Patrick confessed. "He's right about what he said, but the fact that he said it is odd. What is he planning?"

* * *

The teams assembled outside of the mess hall, where Chris awaited.

"Campers, we've altered the standard decathlon events to make them more appropriate for a summer camp. Our first event is going to be the cross country sprint. The race isn't that long, but you're going to be going up hills, climbing over rocks, and so on. You'll be sprinting towards the beach, where the second event will be. So, teams, choose your opponent."

"We're going to choose Stella." Nicolas stated.

"Then we're going to pick Neil." Bobby returned. The two selected campers assembled themselves on the starting line.

"Good luck, rocker girl." Neil smiled.

"You're going to need that luck, magic boy. I heard you talking to your teammates on the cliff challenge, and you're not very athletic, are you?" Stella returned, but she spoke without a hint of condescension. Chris fired a pistol to start the race, and Stella took an early lead, leaping over the rocks with grace and impunity.

"Run smart, Neil." Diana ordered. "Take the hills slower." Neil did so, and it helped. While Stella ran at a consistent speed, Neil was able to conserve his energy for quick bursts as he went downhill. He was able to make up for much of his lost ground that Stella would gain during the hill climbs and few pieces of flat land. The race, however, was a short one, and Stella was able to use a quick adrenaline burst to pull ahead and win the race.

"Okay, so the first event goes to the Cobras." Chris reported. "Now, the second event is going to be a freestyle swim. You're going to swim across the lake to the other side, where the third challenge will be. Be sure to stay inside the buoyed course, campers, because that's the only area where I can kind of say our friends, the man-eating sharks, probably won't be."

"Kind of say?" Martin asked, but Chris turned his attention towards the other campers.

"So, whose going?" Kenny asked.

"We're picking Amanda." Ingrid responded, which caused Edward to cringe. Amanda was not only unathletic, but that foot injury had been distracting her. They were going to lose this race.

"Then we're picking Nicolas." Edward almost immediately barked out.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Nicolas is one of the strongest members on their team. If we're going to lose already, I'm making sure that they lose a strong link. All about strategy at this point. Sorry, Amanda." Edward confided.  


* * *

"I don't like easy wins. I know that girl has a foot injury, and I'll easily win, but hey, accepting a concession would be worse. Come on, girl, let's race!" Nicolas was wearing his swimsuit under his clothes, so it was easy to strip down and prepare for a dip.

"Nice pecs, but khaki trunks?" Michelle teased once Nicolas was ready for the race.

"Get a good look." He flexed for her. "That's all you're getting. As for my shorts, well, I like the color. Ever see the movies? All explorers were khaki." Amanda changed into her bikini while Nicolas flirted.

"Hey, not bad at all. At least you'll look good while you're at the challenge." Nicolas complemented, which caused Amanda to avert her eyes and blush.

The two racers got in the water, and Chris fired another pistol shot to start the race. Unlike the previous sprint race, this race was over before it began. Although Amanda's foot injury didn't slow her down too much, there was absolutely no way she could outswim Nicolas even at her best. The Eagles took the second event with little protest. Nicolas exited the lake to the cheers of the Eagles. Amanda, remembering what Nicolas told her before the race, refused to stop, and swam to the other side. Most of the other campers had moved to the third event, but Nicolas and Edward were waiting for her.

"How's your foot?" Edward asked.

"Not bad." Amanda said, trying to speak without hesitating. Nicolas handed her a towel.

"I'd much prefer to race against you at your peak." He responded, drying his hair with his own towel. "Come on, let's all go to the third event." The three made their way a short distance to a track, where the other campers were huddled around Chris.  


* * *

"Now that we are all here, I'll announce the next event. The next few events are going to take place on our track. Our first event here is going to be the hurdles. Simple enough, just run around the track once and jump over the hurdles. To make things more fun, though, I'm going to light these hurdles on fire." Chris pushed a remote trigger he was holding and, sure enough, all of the hurdles burst into flames.

"So, whose going to be our victims?" Chris's grin took on a sinister tone.

"Pyro much?" Diana asked, but Chris ignored her.

"Uhh, this doesn't look safe, big brother." Shannon bit her nails.

"Looks like Shannon just volunteered, folks." Bobby stated.

"What the hell!" Kenny scowled at Bobby, who chuckled.

"And so have you, cowpoke." An upset Henry rallied to Kenny's defense by selecting Bobby, whose smile immediately diminished. As he got into position, Kenny pulled Shannon aside.

"Just don't concentrate on the fire. Don't even think about it. Just think of it as an obstacle. You can do this, Shan."

"O...okay. Big brother, I..."

"No. Don't question." Kenny cut her off. "Just go forward. Concentrate on what is in front of you. That's what you have to do."

"All...all right." Shannon steeled her face as she went to the starting line, and the race was underway. Bobby took an early lead, his larger size giving him more leaping power over Shannon. About halfway through the course, however, his leg brushed against one of the hurdles, causing him to lose his balance. Although he didn't fall on the hurdle, he had lost his momentum. While he had to go backward to get up to speed to cross the next hurdle, Shannon moved ever forward, passing him and crossing the finish line. The Eagles cheered loudly, revelling in Bobby's defeat.

"Alright, third event's over, and the Eagles are winning 2 to 1. The next event is going to be the discus. Who here thinks they've got a good arm?" Chris reported.

"Edward. We're picking Edward" Ingrid responded.

"Your mouth is annoying." Edward responded. "I guess that means I'm whooping you in this event, Ingrid." Ingrid scoffed at this, but picked up the rubber discus and threw it. It barely went a few yards.

"What?" Ingrid shrugged to her team. "I've never done this before." Edward grabbed his discus and hurled it with a large amount of force. His technique was as bad as Ingrid's was, but his sailed further due to his higher strength. Without another word, Edward went back to his cheering team.

"And Edward ties it up. Okay, campers, the next event is the long jump. Who thinks they're getting some air?"

"Definitely not Jake." Stella said. "That guy always talked about how much he loved the sky rush. I think we should go with the holy guy."

"Agreed." Edward returned. "Martin, you're up."

"Not sure who to pick now." Kenny furrowed his brow. "Patrick's pretty tough, so I'm thinking either Daniel, Greg or Michelle."

"Daniel, then." Martin responded. "Greg is a strange one, and not a safe gamble, and Michelle is lighter, thus she has less wind drag." The skier nodded, removing his hat. Martin intoned a prayer and attempted to make the jump, tucking his body to create less surface area being held back by the wind. His score at twelve and a half feet brought many cheers. Daniel gritted his teeth as he prepared the jump. As he attempted the stunt, however, he cycled his arms and legs forward as if running through the air.

"He's gonna fall." Tanya gasped.

"He'd better not." Bobby returned. As Daniel neared the ground, he swept his arms downward and pivoted his body, preventing him from falling backward and setting his jump at fourteen feet.

"Heh, all that time on the mountain, and you'll learn not to fall down." Daniel smirked.

"And the Cobras pull ahead." Chris responded. "Okay, we've got one last event at the track, and that's the javelin throw."

"I say we pick Tanya. There's no way she's good at this event, and if she is, she can be easily distracted. If I had an audience like her at my magic act, I could use my easiest tricks." Neil quietly asided to his team.

"How can we distract her within the rules?" Nicolas asked.

"You're still in your swim trunks. She's been drooling ever since we got to the track." Ingrid returned.

"Okay, fair enough. We pick Tanya." Kenny announced.

"Then I'll go against Henry!" She announced before anyone else on the team could talk. Henry nodded, and passed his cowboy hat to Nicolas to hold. The two grabbed their javelins. Henry stepped up first and threw it hard. Although it traveled fast, Henry threw it a little too high, and it reached it's apex early.

"Wow, that's really good!" Tanya, oblivious to how the event was supposed to go, cheered.

"Thanks. You're all right, sugar. If you don't win, I'll give you a kiss." Henry blurted out thoughtlessly.

"Really!" This elated Tanya, and she threw her javelin very sloppily, coming nowhere near Henry's throw. She then immediately ran over to her competitor and kissed him. The Cobras seemed angry at first due to her poor performance, but soon they started looking at her with shock and a bit of revulsion.

"Does she breathe?" Edward remarked at the length of the kiss. Once she finished, Henry walked back in shock towards his team.

"Wow, I can't believe that worked." Ingrid cocked an eyebrow at the strange spectacle.

"I don't think he planned it. Look at Henry, poor thing looks like he was hit by a bus." Diana replied.

"Nice work, hot lips!" Neil jeered. The rest of the Eagles shared in the joke.

"I hope I don't get a rash or something." Henry huffed as he placed his hat back on.

* * *

"Alright, we're going to be leaving the track now. The score is all tied up going into the seventh event, which is a long-distance race, where you will race to the mess hall, and the road you'll be taking is through the woods."

"I'm picking Allison then." Bobby interrupted Chris, which caused the host to scowl.

"The only ones left are Greg, Michelle, Patrick, and Kelly." Diana recounted.

"Let's pick Patrick then. Allison's not going to win anyway." Kenny responded. "She's not even going to try anyway, just watch." Patrick took off like a rocket through the woods, while Allison walked. Just as predicted, she didn't even remotely try to win. Patrick soon caught on to this, and walked the remainder of the distance towards the mess hall. Allison eventually showed up at the mess hall to a crowd of glaring teammates, but she simply adjusted her headphones and walked right past them.

"Okay, so now, we're going to have a bit of a break from the usual physical activity events. This next event is going to be a little bit of infiltration. Sneak into the mess hall and steal any piece of food from Chef's fridge. But be careful, you'll never know where Chef is hiding. You won't lose if he finds you, but things will be much more difficult for you if you are caught. Who's feeling dangerous?"

"I know Michelle is certainly feeling bold." Nicolas volunteered a Cobra.

"Wait, why didn't you say Greg? He's never subtle." Neil asked.

"It's too obvious. We need to pick something less obvious and pit Greg in a more direct challenge. He probably lives for this type of needless drama anyway."

"Cobras, who do you pick?" Chris asked.

"Diana, I suppose." Patrick stated. "I don't know what to think of her, and Kenny and Jake are worrysome."

"Okay, I can do this. Hey, preach, any words of support? I mean, isn't stealing a sin or something."

"We are all sinners, but we are supposed to be doing this. May God favor you. I'm glad to hear you enjoy the Word so much."

"Maybe I'll confess to you later." She winked before stealthily opening one of the back windows. Chef was nowhere in sight. Michelle, however, decided to climb to the roof and snuck in one of the higher windows and made it onto the rafters. Diana crept along the floor and crawled under the swinging doors, while Michelle had to make her way to the floor and swing in through the window where Chef served the food. The fridge was right in front of them, but there was another problem. Chef's footsteps could be heard in the pantry. Diana scampered under a table while Michelle ducked behind a trash can, flattening herself against the wall.

Chef furtively looked around the room, and started moving away from the fridge, towards Michelle's hiding place. Seizing the opportunity, Diana slithered on her belly until she reached the fridge. Quietly, she reached in and grabbed the first thing she could find, a head of lettuce. She quickly slithered back under the table, but the slight noise drew the attention of Chef, who started moving his way back towards the fridge. Michelle attempted to move to a better hiding spot, but her footsteps alerted Chef, who wheeled his way over towards her as fast as he could. That distraction allowed Diana to slip out the backdoor and back towards the campers.

"All right, good work, Diana!" Shannon cheered.

"Blessed be this victory." Martin cheered, letting out more emotion then he usually did. A minute later, Michelle exited the mess hall, carrying an apple.

"I know that I lost, but I'm at least going to complete the challenge." She responded before giving the apple to Edward.

"For helping Amanda with her foot." She responded. Edward took it from her with a nod.

"All tied up with only two events left. I hope you guys can bring it." Chris talked to that last four campers who had not yet participated.

"Between Kenny and me, we should be fine." Jake smiled.

"So, what's the event." Kelly responded. She licked her lips in anticipation. This was where she shined.

"I didn't think you campers would keep things up like this. But the ninth event is going to be the archery contest. We're going to do a bull's-eye blitz. You're going to alternate firing at a target until one person hits a bull's-eye. After that, the first person not to hit the bulls-eye is out. So, who wants to give it a shot." Chris chuckled a bit as he gave the event.

"Greg!" Jake said almost immediately.

"Suit yourselves, this is gonna be great. I'm pretty good with a rifle, you know. Bows and arrows aren't the same thing, but I can shoot a nickel off a fence post." Greg grabbed the bow and arrow. Rather then getting ready to shoot, he opted to sit on the ground and attempt to juggle them.

"We're doomed." Kelly responded. "Might as well pick Kenny." The two boys stepped up with bows and arrows in hand. Greg decided to shoot first, and his shot didn't come remotely close to the target.

"I think everyone should stand back about 50 feet whenever Greg has something pointy in his hands." Kenny cracked.

"Or sharp. Or hot. Or toxic." Greg finished the sentence without even thinking about it. Kenny fired his arrow, and hit the outer ring.

"Good, now I know what to do!" Greg fired his arrow, but again, completely missed the target, aiming completely over it.

"Hey, Chef." Chris spoke in hushed tones. "Wanna bet he hits an intern?" Chef shook his head, and watched Kenny fire another shot, hitting a shot right next to the bulls-eye.

"Greg, we're going to lose! Concen..." Kelly started to encourage, but realized the futility of telling him to focus.

"Hey, try firing with your eyes closed!" She said.

"What!" Kenny responded. "He could hit me!"

"Just do it!" Kelly shouted. "It couldn't hurt!"

"Okay!" Greg loaded his bow and arrow and shut his eyes. He fired, and the shot arched gracefully straight into the bull's-eye.

"Holy crap!" Edward was shocked. "How did that work?"

"Because it's harder!" Greg returned. Edward was about to point out that those two things didn't go together, but he remained quiet, lest he provoke another random response from Greg.

"Do it, Big Brother!" Shannon cheered. Gritting his teeth, Kenny fired his third shot. Although it wasn't nearly as good as Greg's shot, it still hit the bull's-eye.

"Alright, so the first person who doesn't hit the bull's-eye loses. Go ahead, Greg." Chris responded. Greg shot another blind shot straight into the target. Kenny gritted his teeth and returned another shot, hitting the bulls-eye. The two traded salvos, consistently hitting the bull's-eye.

"I'm impressed, Greg." Kelly cheered. "Keep it up!"

"Okay!" Greg hit another bulls-eye. Kenny was starting to sweat vigorously. It was getting hard for him to hold the bow properly. However, he still managed to hit his mark.

"Getting kinda tough for ya, big guy. You can back out if you want." Greg offered. "I mean, it's okay." Greg did another blind shot straight into the target.

"Not...a...chance!" Kenny shouted, pulling his bowstring so tight it nearly snapped the bow in half. Kelly shrugged at his bravado. Greg was surpassing everyone's expectations in this event. They just might clinch this.

"This is boring. Come on, fall down already!" Greg responded with another bull's-eye. "Can you hit better then that?"

"Yes!" Kenny shouted, firing another shot. Although it wasn't as close to the center as Greg's shot, it was still good enough to be a bull's eye.

"Why don't you try looking into the sun while you shoot?" Kenny offered slyly. "The worse form you have, the better you do."

"Oh, come on, I'm not stupid." Greg fired another a shot, but it went wide, hitting the outer ring.

"And that's game. Kenny and the Eagles pull ahead. Cobras, you can still pull a tie-breaker." Chris reported.

"How did that happen? Greg didn't follow those instructions." Jake asked. Kenny started chuckling a bit to himself.

"I noticed that Greg tended to position himself very specifically before he shot. He pivoted around when I spoke to him, and it threw him off balance. Okay, Jake. It's all up to you."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"Man, that Kenny's got a dangerous mind when he puts his mind to things. It's helping us now, but when we get to the team merge, do I really want to be facing off against that?" Jake confessed  


* * *

"You got it. Hey, Chris, what's the challenge?" Jake asked.

"The last challenge is a joust. You'll be standing on platforms trying to knock each other off using pugil sticks." The host answered.

"Pugil sticks?" Kelly asked.

"Think an eight foot long Q-tip." Chris returned. "Kelly and Jake, as the only two who haven't gone yet, please take your places." The final contestants grabbed their weapons.

"Good luck, hon." Jake returned.

"I won't need it." Kelly grimaced, and immediately started with an attack towards Jake's face. He parried it and tried to sweep under Kelly's legs, but she jumped. The two traded blows, each attempting to end things quickly with a single decisive blow.

"Wow, they're both really good at this." Henry cheered as they battled each other, buffeting each other with the weapons.

"You're very good, Jake, but now, this ends!" Kelly thrust quickly towards Jake's face, causing him to rear back. He fell back on his heels and nearly toppled straight off the platform, but he quickly ducked. He had a perfect aim at her gut, but instead, opted to smack her in the wrist, causing Kelly to drop her weapon.

"You can't win now, sweetie." Jake smiled. "Either jump off or go down fighting."

"A soldier always goes down fighting!" Kelly grabbed the end of Jake's weapon and started pulling and pushing with it, trying to knock her opponent with force rather then a weapon. Jake had a superior grip on the weapon, but Kelly's savagery and random movements were giving her the advantage. Rather then fight, he opted to let go the second Kelly starting pulling backward. The loss of resistance caused her to topple off the platform and away from victory.

"And that's the end! With six to four, the Raging Eagles are safe from elimination! Cobras, you fought hard, but now it's over. Choose your favorite loser and send them packing."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I'm worried that people are going to look at my failure moreso then any others because I failed last." Kelly reported. "Yeah, six of us lost, but I lost last, and some of the other losers are going to start thinking that it was my fault. As much as I don't want to play alliance, I'm going to have to. Greg and I can team up, since we did well despite losing."  


* * *

While Kelly spoke to Greg, the four winners huddled around each other.

"So, who's getting the axe?" Edward asked.

"Well, Amanda had that foot injury, so I'm willing to cut her a little slack. And then Michelle, Greg, and Kelly did pretty good. I say Bobby, he's just too aggressive." Stella returned.

"Yeah, but Tanya screwed up real bad. I say we should get rid of her." Daniel replied.

"Bobby." Edward responded. "Can't stand that little prick. Thinks he's all good."

"I'm not against booting out Amanda, though. How long is that foot injury going to last?" Patrick pointed out. Edward scowled at his response.

"A foot injury won't last too long." Edward was much more forceful then usual. "She'll be fine by tomorrow. Why don't we just boot out someone who isn't cooperative."

"He'll cooperate as long as the teams last." Patrick returned. "Amanda's just gonna mess up again."

_"_Patrick, sweetie, just don't bother. Edward here is just sweet on her." Stella joked. Edward became even angrier, but said nothing.

"Well, let's just vote and see. This isn't going anywhere." Patrick and Stella left the group.  


* * *

"Campers. This is the third bonfire ceremony. You've all cast your votes, and you know the drill. So come up and claim your marshmallow when you win, and if you're not called, it's Boat of Losers time. First up is Edward." Edward strolled up to claim his prize as the host's announcement.

"Stella. Patrick. Daniel. Michelle." Chris rattled off some names as the Cobras came up at his call.

"Greg, well done today, you're safe." Greg cheerfully grabbed his. The rest of the campers started to tense up.

"Kelly." The army girl eagerly grabbed her prize. The remaining three became even more tense: Amanda started breathing heavily, Bobby's causal indifference became a look of concern, and Tanya chewed her fingernails.

"Amanda." Patrick seemed surprised that Chris called the redhead, but said nothing as she walked to get her marshmallow. He did notice that she wasn't favoring her other leg as much, and decided that Edward was probably right about her foot.

"Okay, campers, this is the final marshmallow. Either Bobby or Tanya will be leaving us tonight." Chris held up the marshmallow and baited the campers with it. Bobby shot looks of both concern and anger at his teammates, while Tanya nearly keeled over from the stress.

"Bobby." Chris announced.

"Heh, looks like you all still have some brains. Later, Tanya." Bobby joined the campers, while a dejected Tanya walked down towards the Dock of Shame with slumped shoulders and a deep sigh.

"Goodbye. When you get home, flat iron your hair to make it straight. Boys'll love it." Amanda responded. Tanya smiled a little.

"The goal is tenure, not turnover. You'll get those boys once you calm down." Michelle taught. The other campers, sans Bobby, gave her words of encouragement, and when she was done, Tanya had her head held high as she boarded the boat.

"And another camper walks the humiliating Dock of Shame. The rest of you, go back to sleep. You're safe, for tonight."

* * *

_Votes_

**Tanya: **Bobby, Daniel, Greg, Kelly, Michelle

**Bobby: **Amanda, Edward, Stella, Tanya

**Amanda: **Patrick


	5. Rescue Me

_"Last time, on Total Drama Island. The campers were pit head to head in a decathlon. Some flew high, and the other fell flat on their face. It was neck and neck throughout the competition, but the Eagles pulled ahead when Jake cleverly defeated the Cobra's strongest link, Kelly. Although Patrick and Edward clashed over Amanda's performance, the Cobras selected Tanya, who threw the challenge for a kiss from her competitor, to walk the Dock of Shame. Will the Cobra men continue to bicker? Can they rescue themselves from another failure, or will someone else throw the challenge for a little sugar? Find out tonight on Total...Drama...Island._

The next morning was a good one for Amanda. Her foot injury was almost totally gone, the sun was shining, and when she woke up, she caught a good view of Edward in his boxers changing. When he finally noticed she was awake, he made no efforts to hide or cover himself, and just greeted her quietly.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Wow, Edward is so great! He's smart, he's good-looking, he's just everything I could ever want. But I gotta play it cool, right? That's what Tanya wasn't doing. Just be nice, right?" Amanda confided.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I kinda wish I was on the other team. I mean, Bobby is the most aggravating person I've ever dealt with, Patrick's pretty annoying, and Stella just follows him. Kelly and Greg are okay, but really extreme. Really, only Amanda and Michelle are cool on my team. The other team just gets along so well." Edward confessed.  


* * *

"Campers, welcome to your fourth challenge." Chris assembled the campers after breakfast outside the mess hall. Beside him were two college-age people the campers had never seen before.

"Today, we're going to put your survival skills and teamwork to the test in a little challenge we call 'Rescue Me.'" Chris nodded as the challenge was given out.

"Isn't that a crappy Madonna song?" Michelle asked.

"Or some fireman show." Shannon added.

"It's a popular name, chill. Anyway, here's the challenge. Each team is going to get one of our interns to work with. Yeah, I'm surprised they lasted this long too, but since they're here, we might as well use the,/ They'll be stuck in the lake in a safe area surrounded by the man-eating sharks. Your job is to rescue them and take them to the finish line, which is an evacuation point about a mile and a half away. Sound easy? Well, your rescue victims are going to be 'injured' so to speak. They won't be able to walk, swim, or do a whole lot of anything. How you're going to get your victim away from the sharks and to the evac point is completely up to you. The intern who is in the best shape when they reach the evacuation point is the team who wins. Okay, so Eagles, your intern is Brooke. She's going to be your damsel in distress." Chris introduced one of the people beside him, a young woman with long dark-brown hair. She avoided eye contact with Chris, but smiled at the other campers.

"And Cobras, your intern is Mark." Chris introduced the other man beside him, a muscular guy with blonde hair. "He's your damsel...err...dude, in distress."

"Wait a minute." Edward stated.

"Hey, blame those PC crazies, dude." Chris held up his hands defensively. "We had to make it equal, after all."

"That's not what I meant. Mark's gotta be, what, 50 pounds heavier then Brooke at least."

"We chose who got who randomly, bro. All of the other interns are in the hospital or the morgue, these are the only two I have left." Chris chuckled, while Edward grumbled.

"We're going to place the interns in their safe zone. Once they are there, the challenge starts. Oh, and they've signed waivers and such, so if you need to, you know, give them up for the sharks and save yourselves, I won't hold it against you too much."

"Cold-hearted..." Brooke was heard grumbling as the two interns walked towards the lake.  


* * *

"Okay, we've really gotta pull this out." Bobby assembled the Cobras outside of their cabin. "We can't afford to let the Eagles win again. We have three things to worry about: How to get to Mark, how to get him away from the sharks once we have him, and how to transport him a mile and a half. Does anyone have any suggestions?"

"I could fashion a makeshift stretcher. It'd be fairly easy." Edward responded. "Considering Mark's size, and that he needs to be kept in the best shape possible, I'd recommend two people carry it, one on each end and a third run beside just in case he needs to be carried over rough terrain."

"Good idea. Our two strongest should carry. Kelly and Patrick, that's you." Bobby delineated positions expertly. "Stella, you can run beside. Greg, your job will be to clear a path from the dock to the evac zone. Cut down branches, move rocks, do whatever it is to make sure the path is clear."

"That leaves the rest of us to get him away from the sharks. How do we do that?" Michelle responded.

"One, probably two, of us will need to swim to him and get him out." Daniel responded. "How will we take care of the sharks?"

"With shark bait. Blood and chum. There should be some of that in the Boat House, shouldn't there. Swimming out is still going to be the most dangerous thing. Who's gonna do that?" Edward asked.

"Me." Daniel responded. "Of the rest of us, I'm the strongest."

"Me too." Amanda added.

"Amanda, are you sure?" Michelle furrowed her brow.

"Yes. I'm a good swimmer, and I'm through holding the team back. My foot's better, but I don't need that to swim, at least, not as much as I would when running." Amanda was determined, so Michelle simply relented. Edward didn't seem thrilled, but Michelle shot him a dirty look that immediately shut him up before he could speak.

"So, it's settled then. Amanda and Daniel swim while Michelle and I distract them with fish guts. Greg, start clearing. The rest of you are on stretcher duty." Bobby gave the final orders as the Cobras broke ranks.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I don't want to admit it, but Bobby is an expert tactician. I wanted to boot him last time, but I think he's useful." Amanda reported. "Edward still doesn't seem to like him, but at least he's productive."  


* * *

At the Eagles camp, the campers were feeling great as they planned their tactics.

"If we use Henry, Kenny, or me, any of us could swim over and get Brooke out ourselves." Nicolas offered. "It would also be easy for us to carry her the rest of the way."

"But she could get injured or fall off easy." Diana responded. "We should use somethingto hold her. Something long."

"How about my cape?" Neil offered. "Many things can hide in a magician's cape. Even a challenge victory."

"If that cape is about as tall as you, it'll be the right size." Shannon added. "Big Brother, are we missing anything?"

"Yeah, how are we going to get to the sharks?"

"I could wrassle the sharks." Henry offered.

"Bad idea. If we had a motorboat, this would be easy. But I don't think we have one of those. So, how to distract those sharks?"

"Why don't we just let the Cobras do that for us? They'll have to distract them anyway to reach the interns, and that means they'll be losing people. We can take advantage of that." Martin responded. "We can then better ourselves at our other pursuits." The Eagles, their plans completed, agreed to get started.  


* * *

While the two interns were floating in the water inside their safe zone, Amanda and Daniel waited patiently at the docks for Bobby's signal. Henry, having seen Bobby on the water, watched him himself to make his move, figuring distracting the sharks was his job. Bobby and Michelle rowed out there on a canoe. That seemed to interest the sharks, and they started to drift away from circling the safe area where Mark and Brooke were. That's when Bobby starting rowing faster while Michelle laid out a chum trail for the sharks to follow. All of the swimmers took this opportunity to hit the water and make a quick swim out. Henry moved the fastest and immediately reached Brooke. Although she was able to get on his back, she was not able to kick or do anything productive because of the challenge rules. Once she was on his back, it became extremely difficult for Henry to swim. He slipped under the surface many times, often when he was trying to catch a breath, creating quite a distressing scene, costing him a lot of time. Amanda and Daniel, by contrast, each took hold of Mark by an arm, distributing his weight between them, allowing them to reach the shore. As they started to pull Mark out of the water, an exasperated Martin dove in to help Henry get Brooke out. With the preacher's extra set of hands, it was much easier to get Brooke to the dock.

Once on the shore, it was a simple enough task for the Cobras to load Mark on the stretcher Edward made. Though it wasn't of the greatest quality, it held together well enough, and Kelly and Patrick started to move towards the evac zone. The Eagles were starting to catch up, with Diana and Jake carrying Brooke in a sling made from Neil's cape. At first, the trip to the evacuation zone was simple. It was clear that Greg had been clearing the path, as some rocks had clearly been moved, and some underbrush had been cleared.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"I owe him some credit." Edward confessed. "I thought he'd just go catch butterflies or try to find some ancient Peruvian treasure, or something weird like that."  


* * *

The ground, however, was quite uneven and difficult to move with any speed. As the Eagles started to pull ahead, Patrick and Kelly started to pick the pace up. They started to make up lost ground, but their jogging speed caused Mark to bounce on the stretcher. After a particularly uneven patch, Mark bounced completely off and slammed into the ground.

"Man down!" Stella called, and she immediately moved over to Mark. When she reached him, her heart sank, as Mark had sustained a cut on his upper abdomen. Although it wasn't nearlya life-threatening or even moderately serious injury, it was fatal to their chance of victory. An open wound, even a minor one, would be bad for the Cobras.

"This is my job." Edward pushed her aside. "Luckily for us, Chris said we could use any supplies we wanted, so I snagged some supplies from the infirmary." He quickly treated and bandaged Mark's wound.

"Okay, that takes care of that." Edward smiled.

"But he's still bandaged. It might be better, but it's not great. Now the Eagles need to trip or we lose." Kelly returned. "We need to hide it somehow." She started to think.

"Patrick, take off your shirt." Stella ordered.

"What, why?"

"Because Mark isn't wearing one."

"He was in the water, that's hardly uncommon...oh wait, that's what you mean." Patrick removed it and handed it to Mark. Now the wound was perfectly hidden provided Chris did nothing more then a cursory examination.

"Now, be careful." Patrick told the others as he picked the stretcher back up. "Treating his injuries takes time, and I'm not taking off my pants."

"Scared of the attention, pretty boy." Stella teased.

"No one has paid my cover charge." Patrick smirked. "But, if it'll let me sing on stage with you." He moved his hands towards the zipper of his jeans.

"Rock and roll is love, sweetheart, but you've got things a little confused. Just settle for being eye candy for right now. Maybe later I can gauge your real skill."  


* * *

Ahead of the Cobras, the Eagles were running into less trouble. Neil's cape actually made a decent shield for Brooke, blocking thorns and other minor obstacles that would have scratched Brooke up. Although Diana and Jake had started carrying Brooke, the Eagles's plan was to rotate the carriers so as not to exhaust and make a mistake due to fatigue. Martin and Shannon were on carrying duty now, while the rest walked beside and helped clear obstacles away.

"How far back do you think the Cobras are?" She asked her big brother.

"Can't be far. But I'm actually more nervous about what's ahead of us." Kenny replied.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Most of the Cobras we've seen already, but I haven't seen Greg all day. I think he might be setting a trap for us."

"I agree, Kenny." Martin returned. "Greg is certainly a fan of the grandiose. Who should go ahead to scout the holy land?"

"You've got metaphors for everything, preach." Diana smiled. "How about you, Allison?" She turned to the girl with the headphones, who shook her head.

"C'mon, Allison." Shannon pleaded. "You haven't done anything for the team yet." Noticing that people were still talking to her, Allison lowered her headphones.

"And what would I be looking for?" She replied snidely. "I'm not the magician, I can't see tricks like that."

"Just go ahead and look for anything unusual. See if Greg set a snare trap or a pit or something. He didn't have time for something extreme, but something that'll trip us up." Kenny answered.

"Oh come on!" Allison shouted. "Look at yourselves. It's pathetic. You think because you're so big and you've got your little sister all up in your drawers singing your praises you can be everyone's boss! I mean, come on, do you even let her have a thought of her own? Stop acting like such a big shot!"  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"What brought that about!" Diana asked. "I mean, sure, Shannon should start thinking for herself more often, but Kenny doesn't want his sister to act like that. There's just no way."  


* * *

The entire team was stunned at Allison's outburst.

"Too dumb to speak?" Allison continued her rant. "Not a surprise, huh, Shan-ban." Allison mocked Kenny's pet name for his sister. "Why don't you just ask Big Brother to get all angry for you because you can't do it yourself. I mean, that's the only reason you haven't been kicked out, is because Kenny's been saving you." A shocked Shannon dropped the cape, causing Brooke's head to hit the ground.

"That's what I mean. Look how much of a screw-up you are. Better hope that doesn't cost us. Now, I'll go ahead and look for those 'traps.' See you all later." Allison replaced her headphones and went off ahead.

"Diana!" Kenny called. Martin gently lay down his end of the cape as Diana checked Brooke for injuries. The fall was nothing serious, and there didn't appear to be any injuries on her. However, because of her hair, that was near-impossible to determine. There probably was, and that was concerning, since they couldn't really treat them.

"Let's keep moving." Nicolas took Shannon's place carrying Brooke. He and Martin quickly departed down the way. Diana looked towards Shannon concernedly. Kenny started to shoo her away, but then relented.

"Walk with us, with you?" He asked of her. The rest of the Eagles followed Martin and Nicolas carrying Brooke while Diana remained. Shannon's eyes were welling up with tears, and Kenny placed his arm around her shoulder as they walked slowly, following the Eagles but making no effort to keep pace. Diana walked behind them, waiting for one of them to say the first word. They said nothing for a time, and Diana wondered whether or not she should speak her mind.

"Allison is just a bitter, sad person." She decided to trust her gut and go for it. "Just ignore what she said."

"But..." Shannon started. "But what she said..."

"Sweetie, fuck her." Diana cursed, causing Shannon to be a little shocked. Diana thought she caught the glimmer of a twinkle in Kenny's eyes.

"That's..." Shannon started to speak again.

"Hon, I'm the last person in the world to believe in polite society. I curse, I gamble, I even drink on occasion, and at 16, it's all supposed to be some pretty bad crap. And when you do that, you get to know a little bit about people. And Allison, she's a loser. Maybe she's never had a real friend, but she's not much else. She brings people down so she can feel better then them, that's the only way for her. She shuts the world out with those headphones of her because she can't deal with them. And I knew this just from right now." Diana's words seemed to be getting through to Shannon, as she walked in silence, mulling over the words.

"Want to know what kind of man your brother is?" Diana asked. Kenny frowned. Shannon thought about the question for a moment.

"No, because I already know. I've known him much longer than you. He's my big brother. He cares about me. And he does want me to think for myself. Because my brain is the greatest thing about me." Bounce returned to Shannon's step as quickly as it had faded, and she ran off ahead towards the group. Diana and Kenny walked in silence for a time.

"Thank you." Kenny responded after what seemed like an eternity.

"Eh, I just said what I felt like. No need do thank me. But hey, if you feel appreciative, you can answer me a question. Why are you still so gloomy?"

"Because you cheered her up and made her feel good about herself. That's my job, and I couldn't do it." Kenny's frown deepened.

"It takes an outsider, they either hit it or miss it. Besides, she needs to find it herself, eh?"

"There's a younger one in your family too, isn't there?" Kenny turned.

"Two younger ones." Diana confirmed. "I'm supposed to set the example and stuff. But the thing is, I'm really such a screw up that they learned the wrong stuff. They were cursing in first grade, and fleecing kids outta their milk money in second. So, hey, I know what it's like to be the big idiot." The two walked in silence again for a time as the Cobras passed them.

"What's say a few idiot elder siblings meet up after the show's over? Grab a coffee or something?"

"Little too forward for me, champ." Diana returned.

"I get it. You like the preacher, huh?" It was Diana's turn to be shocked.

"He's getting to like you too." Kenny reported.

"How do you know that."

"Guys know. That's the mistake every chick makes in relationships. They never ask a guy." Kenny started to pick up his pace. The Cobras had passed them, and they couldn't procrastinate any longer.  


* * *

Learning their mistake from the last time, the Cobras were moving a lot slower. Stella and Edward walked much closer to the stretcher to make sure Mark collided into them if he ever fell out. The group had passed Diana and Kenny earlier, and were puzzled about it for a moment, but pushed it out of their minds as they continued down the trail and saw nothing out of the ordinary. As they continued along they came to Greg, who seemed to have been waiting for them.

"Ahead of us, the terrain is really bad." He reported. "I mean, it's real bad. There's no land mines or anything, but it's gonna be real hard to walk through and we could twist our ankles and such if we're not careful. Wouldn't be surprised if there were land mines though. Chris playssome mean pranks on us all. Come on, we're not far." He led the team forward. Just as Greg hadreported, the path to the finish line wasn't far at all. But the path, if it could even be called a path, was little more then a deep mud pit.

"This looks deep. Look at the Eagles." Edward pointed out to the Eagles, where Henry and Jake were slogging through it, and having a very difficult time of it as they were hauling Brooke, who was hanging in a piece of cloth like a sling. The mud was up to the boys' waists, which meant quite Brooke was getting pretty muddy herself. Amanda wondered if that would count against them.

"How do we do this?" Patrick asked.

"Single file." Amanda asserted. Everyone looked at her.

"Someone needed to think of a plan since Bobby and Michelle haven't joined us yet. We need to stand single file and raise the stretcher over our heads. Step on command. Hey, that solves the problems, right? If you don't want something getting muddy, take it off now." The group positioned themselves under the stretcher and started their march, Amanda calling out 'left' and 'right' so that the steps could be uniform.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"That Amanda really has been taking the things I told her to heart. She's not stuttering or hesitating, and now here she is, leading the team with a tactic that is actually fairly sound. I'm impressed." Edward confided.  


* * *

The Cobras moved slowly, while the Eagles moved a bit faster. Chris watched them nonchalantly as he filed his nails. The groups began to assemble at the finish line.

"Okay, campers, it looks like the Rescue Me challenge has been completed. Now, let's take a look at the damage. Interns, if you would." Chris announced once both teams were present. Mark and Brooke stood up.

"Wow. You are one muddy mess, hon. And it looks like you've been a little banged up too. Mark, you weren't wearing that shirt when you started the competition, were you?" Chris surveyed the two interns.

"A little mud never hurt anyone." Brooke returned, defending the Eagles.

"They thought I was cold. Patrick there was nice enough to lend me something." Mark further took his team's side. He made no indication towards the cut he sustained.

"Well then, it looks like the Cobras are the winners. Eagles, shoulda been more careful. You can see a bit of blood in Brooke's hair." The Cobras cheered and ran off towards their cabin. Kenny groaned, figuring the showers would be extremely dirty tonight.

"So...Eagles, looks like you lost. Tonight, someone on your team is going home." Chris delivered the bitter news.

"Good work, Shannon, dropping Brooke like that." Allison chided.

"Cram it, Allison, before I shove a canoe oar so far down your throat you'll be shitting splinters!" Diana growled. Shannon still seemed dejected at Allison's words.

"We all make mistakes, Shannon." Ingrid said consolingly. "But that was the reason we lost."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This is all going according to plan. I didn't plan for Allison to freak out like that, but I can look like a nice girl, yet still playing the game. Getting Shannon booted will get Kenny off-kilter, and then we can get rid of him too later. I'm going to be in charge of this team." Ingrid confided.  


* * *

After the campers had taken a long shower to get all of the muck out, the Eagles found themselves at elimination ceremony.

"Alright campers, it's time for another elimination. You've all cast your votes and made your decision, so come up and get a marshmallow when I call you. If I don't call your name, that means it's time to board the Boat of Losers and get the heck off this island. The first marshmallow goes to Henry."

"All right!" The cowboy grabbed his prize.

"Diana." Chris called. She grabbed her marshmallow and shot a menacing glare to Allison.

"Neil and Jake, well done guys." The two of them grabbed their marshmallows quickly.

"Martin." Martin fingered his crucifix and mumbled his thanks as he walked up to Chris.

"Ingrid." When her name was called, Ingrid moved almost robotically, not looking at any of the other campers.

"Kenny and Nicolas, well done today." The two boys stood up together, Kenny briefly grabbing Shannon's hand and smiling before going over towards the others.

"Campers, this is the final marshmallow. Allison and Shannon, one of you will be eliminated tonight, and must go down the Dock of Shame. Shannon, you cost the team today, and you guys didn't even cover up her blunder. And Allison, I don't know what's going on with your team, but man, do they same to hate you, girl."

"Shut up, Chris. Just give me my marshmallow and boot out this loser." Allison replied derisively. Shannon gave no response to another of Allison's rants.

"The last marshmallow goes to..." Chris held up the marshmallow and started to speak. Shannon didn't even look at him, instead, she looked straight at Kenny, her lips pursed, her eyes misty and looking to him for hope. Kenny's expression was deadpan.

"...Shannon." Chris finished. Shannon almost didn't hear him, but Allison certainly did.

"What! You all kept this loser! Well, I guess you're all as dumb as that meathead over there." Allison shouted.

"How smart can you be if you got the boot. We tried to be nice before, but you didn't care. Go walk the Dock of Shame and get out of our sight!" Kenny, much more irate then he had been all day, uttered remorselessly.

"So outta this place." Allison strode off past Chris and the other campers and boarded the Boat of Losers. No one waved goodbye, instead, they walked in silence back towards their cabin. Most of them walked as a group, but Ingrid walked slowly behind them.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This...didn't go as I had hoped. I guess Allison didn't handle herself well enough. Now I've got to think of a new plan. Guess she was a total waste." Ingrid confessed.  


* * *

_Votes_

**Allison: **Diana, Henry, Jake, Kenny, Martin, Nicolas, Shannon

**Shannon: **Allison, Ingrid, Neil


	6. Talented in Sabotage

_"Last time on Total Drama Island. The campers had to put their skills to the test rescuing our interns from shark-infested waters. Bobby led the Cobras with a masterful strategy, with help from a surprising source, Amanda, who revealed a calculating mind behind that well-permed hair. Well done, you two. Over on the Eagles side, the normally quiet Allison angrily lashed into Shannon when she suggested that Allison actually help the team out. The Eagles lost the challenge, and Allison blamed Shannon for the mistake. The other Eagles, however, blamed Allison, and she was sent packing. Man, that oughta teach her; never fight a girl in front of her older brother. Will Amanda snatch another surprising win for her team?_ _Will the brother-sister dream team still hold? Can Chef's talent for bad food make our campers get plague? Find out tonight on Total...Drama...Island." _

Ingrid awoke the next day to the sounds of grunting. Grumbling, she sat up in her bunk

"If that's Chris with his version of a wake-up call, I swear I'm going to kill him." She wiped the drowsiness from her eyes to survey her cabin. The source of the noise was a few of the other Eagles. Henry, Kenny, and Nicolas were all gathered around in front of the full length mirror in front of the cabin. All three were shirtless, flexing and making grunting noises in the mirror.

"Ugh, this is like a bad frat party." Ingrid groaned, making her presence, and annoyance, known to the others.

"Morning." Nicolas replied nonchalantly.

"Mind taking your games outside." She ordered them.

"What's wrong, don't like a free peek?" Kenny struck a pose. "Besides, it's almost time for breakfast. Chris gives us our challenges around that time, so..."

"What? You didn't tell me!"

"You were asleep. Besides, Chris didn't tell us anything, we were just guessing. Might want to get ready." The boys returned to their showboating, leaving a grumbling Ingrid to grab her make-up kit and towel and dash for the shower.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This team is a bunch of losers and idiots." Ingrid confessed. "I'm probably the only one left with any brains on our team. We've got the muscle-heads, the preacher, the pissy girl, and the little sister. And unfortunately for me, all of them have votes, and I don't have anyone in my corner. I've got to force my hand now to get rid of Kenny. But tricking this dumbasses should be simple once I know what the challenge is."

* * *

"Hello campers." Chris greeted the campers in the mess hall, right on schedule. "I hope today you're ready to show us what you're made of."

"Oh great, what's going to be the next sadistic challenge? Fighting a bear buck naked with a plastic fork?" Edward responded. Chris paused for a second.

"No, but I'll run that one by the producers later on. Thanks, bro, they should hire you for Season 3."

"Edward! Don't volunteer things!" Daniel chided.

"Relax, he's just kidding. Right?" Amanda asked, but Chris didn't answer.

"Anyway. The next challenge is going to be a twist on something we did last season. I'm talking about the ever-popular talent show. Last season, we had some decent talent and a lot more humiliating screw-ups. Just like before, you can perform any act you want, and you can root around in our equipment shed for any spare parts. But we're going to make a few changes. Your team is only going to have two acts to perform, but these don't necessarily have to be solo acts. Your teammates are free to participate in your acts with you. However, if you use a teammate in one act, they can't be a part of the other one. The act that rates the highest will be the winning team, and the losers will be sending someone home. You have until five o'clock tonight to get your acts together. Best of luck, dudes."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Finally. Now this is something I can get behind." Neil reported. "The other challenges were a lot of physical activity, which I'm not strong at. But here is where I shine. My cabaret act is perfect for this. It's a small stage, and I can string together three tricks into an act. We're so going to win this."

* * *

"Alright, Cobras, assemble!" Bobby called for the team to assemble outside of their cabin. Edward groaned at Bobby's assertiveness again.

"We need two very good acts. The Eagles are not going to just stand around and let us walk over them. Who here can think of the greatest act we can pull off?" Bobby paced, trying to draw the attention of his teammates.

"We can ride boarback across the stage singing the Mikado while Daniel sacrifices one of Chris's surviving interns to Tezcatlipoca, the god of night!" Greg shouted cheerfully, before collapsing into a mad cackle onto the ground. The other Cobras cocked eyebrows as his behavior.

"What does opera have to do with human sacrifice?" Kelly asked.

"Somebody gag him." Bobby ordered. Greg giggled impishly as Amanda led him away.

"There is something seriously wrong with that guy." Bobby noted once he was out of sight.

"I think he just wants us to think there's something wrong with him." Kelly responded. Everyone was silent for a second.

"But, back to the acts." Edward responded. However, none of the Cobras volunteered anything.

"Oh jeez, no one is going to ask me?" Stella asked after a painful minute of silence. "How about, hey Stella, you've got that guitar, right? How about you perform?" The other Cobras looked at her for a second.

"I was thinking that." Patrick defended.

"I think we were all trying to push the images Greg's thoughts had in our mind away." Michelle followed up. "So, Stella, what can you do?"

"I could perform any song fairly easily, but we'd probably want to put a band together. I can just strum on my guitar, but, ah, that's too...intimate." Stella offered.

"With what instruments? You might have a guitar, but wouldn't you need a drummer and a bassist?" Edward asked.

"Patrick and I can root around in the equipment shed. I can show someone what to do with the instruments once we have them and we know whose going to be in our other act."

"Alright, that's one." Bobby agreed. "And that's Stella, Patrick, and two others gone."

"Hmmm...why don't I go with you to the equipment shed, Stella?" Michelle offered.

"Why?"

"I want to see if anything there inspires me. We still have some time, don't we?" Michelle smiled. Stella agreed, and the three departed for the shed.

* * *

Neil's idea for a magic act received rave reviews among the Eagles. Ingrid was surprisingly cheerful about the whole idea.

"We need an act that's going to mesmerize and make them in awe. What better way then illusions? Easy enough, but what about our other act? Who here has a special talent?"

"I'm a great shot with a pistol." Henry offered. "I mean a really great shot. We have this trick I do where two people hold things in their hands and on top of their heads, and I shoot. Six shots, six items, all knocked off the head, no one gets hurt."

"Isn't that kinda like the magic act?" Shannon wondered.

"No...we might be able to use that if Neil helps us make it look flashier. What's the smallest target you ever shot?" Jake asked.

"I've shot a bottle of vanilla extract off someone's head."

"If your shooting is that good, we've got our two acts. Who shall assist?" Martin asked.

"Well, whose the judge? If lady-killer Chris is going to be the judge, I'll just get Ingrid and Shannon to be my assistants and they can wear bikinis. If it's gonna be a girl, I'll just use Kenny and Nicolas and have them take their shirts off." Neil chuckled.

"Subtle. But I think the judge is Chef." Diana returned.

"So...one of each?" Neil asked. The other campers shared in a chuckle.

* * *

Patrick and Stella had very specific things in mind when they rummaged through the shed. Michelle, however, seemed to be more aloof, picking up items that seemed to be random. She would grab some, toss others aside, hold others aloft as if testing their weight.

"Hey, Stella, I think I found a working bass." Patrick called her over. Stella was surprised to find anything of use in this junk heap, but the guitar itself appeared to be working, if not in overly great condition.

"Who are we gonna have play it?" She asked. "You know if anyone else has ever used one of these. I'd rather not train someone blind."

"Not that I know of. Maybe Edward's had a closet dream to be in a band. And whatever Michelle's doing and if she needs anyone. Hey, you find anything?" Patrick called.

"Yeah. I think I'll need Amanda and I'm good." She responded, grabbing a large beach ball and some rubbing tubing.

"What's the act?" Stella asked.

"Oh, you'll see." Michelle chuckled and left the shed. Stella wasn't sure what exactly Michelle's plan was, but she took a look at Patrick, who seemed to be poring over the image in his mind, and realized that he was liking what he thought of.

* * *

At the Eagles cabin, Henry was practicing shooting cans off of the cabin steps. Shooting the targets was fairly easy, but that wasn't going to be the challenge. Henry's shooting was serviceable, but bland. It wouldn't be a contender for the win without looking more flamboyant. Jake and Shannon were trying to help him to do some dance steps, gun spins, and other fancy tricks to jazz up the act, but that was throwing his aim off quite a bit. With his aim off that badly, he wouldn't be able to shoot with people around.

"You need to be able to aim without lining up the crosshairs." Jake said. "Try to step, aim, then fire. You're so used to standing still."

"Alright. Maybe I just..." Henry tried a few steps, just as Shannon showed him, but the shot, again, went wide.

"If that was on my head, you would have got me right in the groin." Jake fidgeted. "You're releasing the trigger too early." While Jake was trying to coach Henry, the rest of the team was over with Neil, and his more elaborate acts.

"So, the way it works is that there are three separate acts." Neil instructed. "We'll start with making Diana magically appear in the empty box, then we'll do the trick where Diana changes into Kenny, and then, I make Kenny levitate. They all flow together."

"Have you done this act before?" Ingrid asked. She had been quite eager to learn all of the tricks about this act ever since it was proposed.

"Not with someone as big as Kenny, but it just requires some minor tweaks. It'll be easier if we use Diana for the first act since she's smaller. Martin, you'll help me set up for the first act, Ingrid, you the second, and Nicolas will be the third. I'm counting on you guys to help make sure all the props are in order, and to keep everything a secret when this is over. Never reveal the secrets of a master."

"Sure thing, Neil. I was just making sure." Ingrid smiled.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This opportunity couldn't be more golden. Kenny's by his lonesome on the third act. So I watch Nicolas and see how the trick is supposed to go, then I sabotage it before the show. Kenny messes up the act, I come in and defend Neil. Either Kenny or Nicolas goes. That alliance crumbles. Then I sway over the preacher, and I've got enough people to get rid of Shannon. There, no more threats to power."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I really don't trust Ingrid. I don't." Nicolas confided. It seems like she's always had it out for Kenny and Shannon. Maybe she thinks that they're too strong a force since they can't get broken up. I don't think she's even on board for winning as a team. We gotta get rid of her when we get the chance. But I really don't want to lose this act today. I don't want to be behind on campers."

* * *

Over at the Cobra's cabin, Michelle had taken Amanda into the cabin. They were practicing, or so Michelle said. Stella didn't have time to be curious. Greg had offered to play the bass since he was familiar with the instrument. However, once she heard him play, she wondered if he was making that up, like he made up so many things. She left Patrick in charge of finding a drummer and devoted her energy on Greg.

The learning was slow, but eventually he got the hang of the instrument, and started to play with competence. Stella took pride in what she had shown him, but her heart started to falter when she realized the group had less than two hours to practice together. Greg may have had his part down when he worked alone, but, with all the lights and discordant sounds, would he truly be able to keep his focus when focus was beyond him? She assembled Patrick and Bobby, who had agreed to be the drummer. Stella had privately hoped that Kelly would perform the role, but while she was training Greg, it seemed the army girl had been drafted into Michelle's act. The three instrument players started to play together, and managed to keep their harmony together.

"Okay, Pat, you're up." Bobby called. "Give us some lyrics, then."

Patrick cleared his throat, and then started to sing. The other band players said quiet so he could make sure he was on pitch. He started to sing a slower song, and Stella found herself completely enchanted. Her style of music was fast, rough; Stella herself was used to the mosh pit. She despised the pop, bubblegum, mainstream scene. But hearing Patrick's voice, hearing him sing what she despised, made her question whether or not it was all bad. There was no doubt about it, he was good. Stella joined in once she figured Patrick was on pitch. Soon Bobby and then Greg were getting into the flow. When the set finished, Stella had a very large smile on her face. The first time since she came here, she was starting to feel like a real winner.

"Not bad, guys. We sound alright, let's just work better. Greg, go a little faster on those chords, Bobby, less cymbals. Let's take it from the top!"

* * *

Rehearsals were going smoothly for Neil. Diana was a fast learner and got the first trick down very quickly. The second act was extremely simple, but Kenny seemed th have difficulties with the third act.

"Fear of heights?" Nicolas had asked. Kenny shook his head, but added that he didn't like the idea of falling on his face.

"Relax, you're going to levitate. You'll just levitate up to the top and disappear behind the curtain. After that, you won't be on the stage. The rest is all me." Neil supported. Kenny seemed to be less bothered when Neil said, and started practicing the levitating act again.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"I'm not afraid of heights of anything, but I've got a bad feeling about me getting put into such a spotlight. Ingrid was really quick to try and get Shannon booted when Allison threw her hissy fit, and I don't think she's going to stop because Allison is gone. We've got to keep our guard up, but there's little I can do from the stage. And I'm really not scared of heights."  


* * *

Henry was having a much better time with shooting and incorporating his flair, but Jake and Shannon, as his two volunteers, were a lot less enthusiastic then he was.

"I'm hittin' my marks now, ya'll. And these bullets are blanks anyway." He reassured, doing a few steps as he shot the cans off of the railing. It was true, his aim was better, and he had done so while doing the dance. Logically, the two of them should be fine. But that didn't stop Jake and Shannon from frowning deeply.

"It's not weird to dislike being shot at." Jake tried to lighten the mood as the Eagles walked to the stage.  


* * *

"And welcome, campers, to the 2nd annual Total Drama Island talent show." Chris announced. "Today, we've got our two teams performing two acts, and they're backstage right now, praying that they actually do it without totally screwing up. First up, let's hear it for Stella and her band. Ladies and gentleman, I present to you, Seraphim Crush."

"Who came up with that stupid name?" Chris asked an intern when his microphone went off. The curtain raised, and the assembled band started to play. The three on instruments started to get into a good beat before Patrick came out singing. To balance out the musical differences between the two major players in the band, Patrick and Stella had agreed to sing a rock ballad from an 80's hair band. With plenty of power chords, it was enough to keep Stella on her toes throughout the entire song. Greg strummed feverishly to match Stella, and his pacing was a bit off. With Patrick's voice, though, most of the campers, and hopefully, Chef, wouldn't notice it. It seemed as though the Eagles sitting in the audience were impressed, and the crowd gave applause at the conclusion.

"Sweet notes, dudes. Looks like Chef's liking your style, he's giving you six points. Okay, our next act is supposed to be a bit dangerous, which is always awesome! Let's hear it for Henry."

"You alright, Henry?" Shannon asked backstage.

"Yeah...yeah. I can do this. No sweat." Wiping the sweat off his brow, Henry came out, dressed in a full costume borrowed from Neil. Bedecked in rhinestones and a wide-brimmed, flashy hat, Henry tried not to let his nervousness show. He took a bow and drew his two six-shooters, starting his act warming up the crowd by twirling the revolvers in his hand. Tossing, juggling, back-hand catches, more flashy tricks that Neil had recommended Henry mix in while Jake and Shannon set themselves up, placing the targets around their bodies. This was going to be a very precise act; twelve shots, twelve targets. Once they gave the signal they were ready, Henry made a dead stop, pausing for a second. Then he started to move. The first shot was perfect, cleanly hitting a can on Jake's shoulder. Almost immediately afterward, another can was shot off Shannon's hand. Henry started into his jig, bending down to one knee and taking another shot before spinning around and quickly firing again with the other hand. His guns flashed and twirled, and the more Henry hammed up his dance moves, the better his act look, and the straighter his shots got. Jake and Shannon lost the fear in their faces after the fifth shot, and stood fearlessly as the rest of the bottles shattered around them.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I'm watching Henry on the other team do his act, and I'm thinking, this is really bad for us. He's good, and there's no possible way our band act could beat that. I sure hope Michelle's mystery act is as good as she says." Bobby confided.  


* * *

"Wow, that was a great act, bro. Chef and I are both loving it, eight points. So, can the Cobras recover from this? Let's find out. Michelle, you're up." Chris left the stage, and the curtain went up. Michelle sat on the stage with a giant ball, wearing a sheer white gown that left precious little to the imagination. The Cobras looked at her quizzically.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"It's certainly not a bad sight." Daniel confessed. "But what exactly is this act going to be. And where do Amanda and Kelly come in?"  


* * *

Michelle then stood up and started into her act. She span around, dancing with the ball in a burlesque show, using it to tease and flirt with the audience. The Cobras' heart sank. While pretty, the act wasn't eventful. There was no chance that this act would beat Henry's gun show. As if sensing this, Michelle became more lavicious. She immediately ripped off the dress she was wearing. Clad only in white lingerie, she started moving much more provocatively, thrusting and pivoting, using the ball in a much more decadent way.

"Oh, come on!" Diana groaned. "Whose going to fall for some cheap T&A? Right, Martin?" Diana asked. She received no response.

"Martin!" Diana turned saw Martin and Kenny, watching the act with big smiles on their faces. She had to stomp on their shoes to get their attention. But theit attention was similarly distracted moments later when Amanda came out. Barely clad as well, with rubber tubing around her body, she came in close to Michelle, and the two danced with each other, Michelle grinding on Amanda using the tubing.

Unable to shake the attention of the men, Diana watched the act herself, and realized she was being a bit harsh on Michelle. The act was decadently sexual, that much was obvious. But it certainly didn't seem too vulgar or pornographic. The girls weren't wearing much, but both of them were clothed somewhat, nothing overtly explicit was being shown. Michelle was also quite the competent dancer, she knew exactly how to move and bend, moving her body to showcase her real talents.

"It might even be better if she kept the dress on." She grudgingly admitted. The act was going into the finale, where Kelly had moved out a giant white screen. All three women danced behind it so that the audience could only see their silhouette. Even as shadows, all three women were lithe and graceful.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"It's even better with the screen." Diana confessed. "This might be bad for us. When I watch this act, I don't see us winning the challenge. I hope Neil is as great as they say."  


* * *

The act ended with all three shadows close together locked in what appeared to be a three-way kiss. Chris, watching from the audience, seemed to enjoy what he saw and by the wide smile on his face, his thoughts were echoed in practically all the men present.

"Well, I've seen a lot of weird yet amazingly cool things happen on this show, but never have I seen a three-way shadow-dancing lesbian kiss. Looks like Chef is giving you a nine, giving you the lead." Any ill thoughts the Cobras might have had about Michelle's act being vulgar were instantly dispelled upon hearing the victory.

"The Eagles can still get a victory, and it looks like this act is going to be a good one. Let's make some noise for Neil." The curtain opened for it's final time, and Neil stood out on stage. Although he normally wore his top hat and cape, today he wore his full costume with a white stage shirt and black pants. He certainly looked like he belonged on a stage in Vegas. Martin, the assistant for the first act, wheeled out a box. Before leaving the stage, Martin opened the front of the box and proved to the crowd that it was, in fact, empty. Now in command of his show, Neil started to wave his magic wand about the box, then started to walk around it, stopping to pace and randomly wave his wand about.

Meanwhile, backstage, Ingrid was helping Kenny with the second act. Ingrid wasn't exactly sure how it was supposed to work; Neil was insistent that a magician never really his secrets. But she figured out how the third one would work. The levitation act called for some very thin wires, and they would be easy enough to tamper with. She couldn't break them, that would be too obvious. But she figured it would be easy to mess with them.

"What are you doing?" She heard a voice behind her as she was investigating the wire. It turned out to be Edward.

"Working on our act. Don't think you can get away with any sabotage on my watch." She turned around, scowling at him.

"Relax. I'm not here to screw you over. After Michelle's act, you're going to need all the help you can get." Edward threw up his hands and walked away. Unknown to Ingrid, however, he kept watching her. And he watched as Ingrid weakened the wires by shaving them down with a knife she borrowed from the kitchen.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I saw Ingrid fiddle with one of the wires for Neil's act. I don't know what exactly it's going to entail, but she's definitely up to no good. Why would she want to sabotage her own team like that, and why do it in an area where anyone could just walk around. She acts all big, but really, she's just an idiot. I'll make sure I'm ready in case someone gets hurt." Edward confided.  


* * *

Neil's first act was a resounding success. From the apparently empty box, Diana burst through the front. Even the Cobras were impressed at his talent. The next show required Diana to lay down into another, longer, box. Neil placed a cover over it, wove his magic wand, and when he removed it, Diana had disappeared. The crowd cheered. Neil placed the cover back over the box, waved his wand a second time, and, when he removed it, Kenny had appeared in the box.

"I'm not sure if this can beat Michelle or not." Greg commented to his fellow Cobras. "But this is one great act. It's all magicall...y and such. They just might pull it off."

"It's okay if they do." Kelly responded. "We'll just work harder in the tie-breaker. There's no way this act is perfect." By this time, Kenny had gotten out of the box and was now sitting on a chair Nicolas had placed on stage. The audience had been fairly jovial, but they now hushed in anticipation of the finale. Neil waved his wand another time, then snapped his fingers. Kenny started to rise off of the chair and up towards the top of the stage. The Cobras were in awe at this feat. It made them a bit nervous that their victory was not assured, but the Eagles would be earning it, and they couldn't be criticized for that.

However, rather then Kenny rising up and out of sight, something unexpected happened. Kenny did not disappear into the rafters. Instead, he levitated for a while, then crashed down to the stage floor, as if the air could no longer hold his weight.

"Whoa!" Stella said. "Was that supposed to happen?"

"That didn't look like magic to me." Michelle returned. Neil slapped his hand to his head.

"Shame, bro." Chris went back onto the stage. "You totally would have had it were it not for that little blunder. That means the Cobras are our winners. Congratulations you guys. Eagles, that means that tonight, you'll be voting someone off."  


* * *

Backstage, the Eagles were cleaning up the rest of their props. The entire team seemed extremely down, moreso then just losing a challenge. They were going to win, Chris had told them. If it wasn't for that failure, it would have been a smooth ride.

"Neil, if you hadn't done that with someone as big as Kenny, shouldn't he have gone into Henry's act, and you use Shannon. Or Ingrid?" Nicolas asked.

"Hey, lay off him." Ingrid defended. "You were supposed to make sure the props were going to work. Neil's plan was solid."

"Those wires held me and Shannon together, and the two of us weigh more then him."

"Then maybe Kenny messed up while he was there. I mean, all that was supposed to happen was he sat there while the wires hoisted him, but he moved around a lot while there." Ingrid set her plan in motion. The rest of the team knew that their failure stemmed from that act. If she could get Kenny or Nicolas voted out, her position would be much more secure.

"I wasn't told of anything regarding sitting still. Would that matter, Neil?" Kenny asked.

"And even if it wouldn't." Henry came to Kenny's aid. "Why wouldn't Neil mention that? Aren't all of these acts supposed to be planned out to the smallest detail? We didn't have much maneuvering room, we couldn't just throw an act."

"Oh, you Eagles. We're not even 20 minutes done the show and already you're about to stab each other in the face." A voice called out to the Eagles. They turned to see Edward.

"Is there a reason you've come here?" Martin asked. "Have you come to brag? Pride is a sin."

"Chill, preach." Edward responded. "You're talking trash to a faithful man. Anyway, I came here to make sure Kenny didn't have a wound. You did fall on your face."

"It's just a bruise and a nosebleed. I didn't break anything."

"What happened back there?" Edward asked.

"My trick didn't work." Neil became terse, annoyed with the failure being brought up again. "What more to say. Congratulations. Your rancorous sex won the challenge. Kenny is fine, so you can just head on back to your team."

"Neil, don't be so mean." Shannon replied. "I don't know how the trick didn't work, but Kenny was supposed to rise up and disappear from the ceiling, and Diana was going to appear back on stage."

"I'm not going to ask how a magician does his tricks, but I'm guessing that is what that broken wire you have in your hands was about. Weren't you checking that out during the first act, Ingrid?" Ingrid was surprised that Edward would bring that up. He couldn't have seen her do that, could he?

"No, my job was the second act. Nicolas was in charge of act three." Ingrid tried to keep a plain face, but Kenny immediately drew his attention toward her.

"I heard someone there while I was in the box, and you weren't there at the time."

"That's because I had to get the other part ready, the part where Diana disappears."

"Ingrid, did you sabotage the act?" Edward posed. Ingrid faked a look of appall.

"How dare you! We Eagles are a team, this is going to be our last elimination until the teams merge. What's your Cobra strategy, Eddie boy? Want to distract us with these thoughts next time, or just hoping we get into a fight so we get disqualified?"

"Hey, I'm just asking about what I saw." Edward was very nonchalant about it in response to Ingrid's fury. He left without another word.

"Tch. Those Cobras, they just want to make us fight."

"Grinding salt in our wounds?" Jake frowned. "I think we'll all benefit from a break from the game. I'm gonna go rest in the hammock. Call me when it's time for the campfire."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"If I had to pick whether I'd trust Edward or Ingrid, I'd have to go with Edward. Every time." Jake reported. "I wanted to diffuse the situation before Ingrid got more people on her side. I'm not sure whether or not she did actually do it, but if it was sabotage, it would only be her. She acts all nice and sweet, but she's evil. At least Allison shut up when she wasn't nasty. I'm just worried that the others will kick out a strong player because of her."  


* * *

"Eagles, welcome to your third campfire ceremony. I've got eight marshmallows on this plate, and nine campers. If I call you, come up and collect it. If I don't call your name, you'll be taking a walk down the Dock of Shame to catch the Boat of Losers. The first marshmallow is for Henry."

"Yeehaw! That's what I'm talking about!" Henry shaped his fingers into a gun and started shooting in the air before grabbing his prize.

"Shannon." Shannon grabbed her prize and took her seat. She focused on Kenny, silently praying with all her heart.

"Martin." Martin wordlessly grabbed his prize.

"Neil." The magician breathed a sigh of relief as he went to grab his prize.

"Jake." Jake sprinted to get his prize, leaping over the campfire in a needlessly elaborate fashion.

"Diana." She snapped her fingers at the call of her name, and ate her marshmallow on the walk back to her seat.

"Nicolas." Nicolas grabbed his prize and returned to his seat without a word, although he didn't appear to be in a good mood.

"The final marshmallow goes to..." Chris trailed off and plucked the marshmallow off the plate. Kenny sat hunched forward on his seat, looking intently into the marshmallow as if trying to look through it. Ingrid had a sly smile on her face as she regarded Kenny.

"Kenny." At the mention of his name, Kenny brushed his hand through his hair with a sigh of relief.

"You've got to be kidding me. You believed the Cobra over your own teammate?" Ingrid jumped to her feet.

"Eddie might be a cobra, but he's way more honest then you." Henry barked.

"You have been judged upon the scales, and have been found wonting." Martin sermonized. Diana cheered him. With a huff, Ingrid left to go down to the dock.

"And then, there were eight Eagles remaining." Chris responded. "Good night, and I'll see you tomorrow." He walked away.

"To the true Raging Eagles." Jake cheered. "Although we're not fans of that traitor, let's do what she says and not get back here until the merge, yeah?" The rest of the Eagles cheered in agreement. Despite the sour mood they were in after the challenge ended, each Eagle fell asleep with a smile on their lips.

_Votes_

**Ingrid: **Diana, Henry, Jake, Kenny, Martin, Neil, Nicolas, Shannon

**Kenny: **Ingrid


	7. Absolutely Poisonous

_"Last time on Total Drama Island. The campers put their talents to the test in our 2__nd__ annual talent show. They brought a lot to the table this time around. Although Henry took some points for the Eagles, Neil's magic act couldn't hold a candle to Michelle's burlesque show. Well done girl. The Eagles got to the bottom of their failure, and realized that it was Ingrid who sabotaged her own team in an attempt to take dominance from the team away from Kenny. But she couldn't defend herself against her own sabotage when Edward called her out on it, and when it came down to elimination, it was goodbye, Ingrid. The Eagles are one camper behind the Cobras. Will the birds bounce back, or will the Cobras deliver a toxic sting? Find out tonight on Total...Drama...Island."_

When Diana woke up the next morning, the drudgery of camp life was starting to get to her. She had already dealt with Allison's rage and Ingrid's backstabbing, as well as getting a closer look at the shattered psyche of Kenny and Shannon's relationship. It was quite draining to deal with everyone's emotional problems.

* * *

_(Confession Cam_)  
"I really didn't sign up for something like this." Diana confessed. "I signed up to participate in a game show, participate in a bunch of crappy challenges designed by a psychotic host, get my expenses paid, and win some quick scratch. I certainly don't wanna deal with psycho-bitches like Allison and Ingrid. I hope now that they're gone we can concentrate on the game."

* * *

Over in the Cobras cabin, the thought of being ahead exhilarated the campers. Patrick woke up singing.

"We're gonna win today! I'm ready for anything they throw at us." He sang from his bed

"You can at least put on some clothes on first. You're not going to win a challenge in your boxers." Bobby, lying in the bunk under him, growled, angry at being woken up.

"And you shouldn't get cocky." Edward retorted. "We have won two events, and we're ahead. But that doesn't mean we will stay ahead. None of these challenges have been won by numbers."

"That doesn't mean we won't win. Come on, we've been kicking ass so far. Don't jinx it with bad mojo." Patrick cheered

"I'm just glad the world doesn't operate the way you think." Edward sighed.

"How can someone so smart act so stupid?" Bobby asked, getting out of bed to confront Patrick. The three guys continued to bicker.

"Whew, stripped down and arguing. The way I like my men. Didn't get dressed yet and already fighting." An alluring voice drew attention. They turned to see Michelle, wearing a towel, standing in the doorway.

"Deal with things as they come up." Bobby said. "The world could end while I'm picking out a good shirt."

"No need to be so terse. I'm sure Patrick will be serious once the challenge starts. Now, I'm gonna get changed. Turn away if you're shy." She chuckled and moved to the drawer she shared with Amanda.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Michelle is one of our strongest players. She always uses her, ahem...assets, to help the Cobras on the field and off." Bobby confessed. "I...ah...wish some of the other campers were as helpful as she was. The weakest on our team now is probably Daniel. I don't remember him ever showing a lot of excellence or coming up with great plans, he just kind of just goes along for the ride. Maybe we need a freak blizzard or something for ski boy to stand out, but I'm not in the mood to wait."

* * *

The campers entered the mess hall to find neither Chris or Chef anywhere in sight. But there was more then just a lack of people, there didn't appear to even be food of any kind.

"Though I'm glad not to be eating that crappy food anytime soon, where's Chris?" Nicolas asked. As if on cue, the kitchen doors opened and out came the host.

"Campers." Chris chimed in with a cheerful tone. "We've decided to give you a reward before starting the next challenge."

"Reward? Nice things? Who are you and what have you done with Chris?" Daniel asked.

"Hey, I can do nice things, dude." Chris replied. "We've decided to give you a nice big meal. And trust me, you guys will want it when you hear about the challenge. It's all outside, enjoy." Chris left the mess hall, and the other campers immediately followed him past the campfire pit towards the shore. True to his word, there was a big table full of food.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"The Good Book says to live not on bread alone, but when I think about all of the stomach cramp inducing slop we've been eating until now, I'm more then willing to let such food sustain me." Martin confided.

* * *

The campers gorged themselves on the food. The food itself was fairly average, it seemed like standard food served by any catered party. However, the campers, who were used to Chef's barely-edible slop, found it tasted like fine cuisine.

"You all eat like you have some sort of wasting illness." Edward was surprised at the lack of grace as they ate. Kenny had crumbs and mayonnaise around the corners of his mouth, and Neil was gorging himself on bottles of soda.

"So says the guy covered in barbecue sauce. Did you eat all the wings?" Kenny responded.

"I saved maybe three." Edward defended weakly.

"Sooo..." Chris sounded off as he came around. "Enjoy your meal? Didn't save any to share with the host?" He crossed his arms at the last comment.

"Sorry. Shoulda said something? Hey, got any napkins?" Kelly responded.

"Glad to see you all enjoyed the meal. Everyone's stuffed?" Chris rubbed his hands together excitedly.

"Come on, Chris, give us the challenge!" Greg responded. "After a good meal like that, how bad could the challenge be."

"It's already started. That meal we served you was specially prepared for all of you. It had nothing you would get allergic from, nothing that would offend any political or religious issues you had, and, oh yeah, I forgot to mention, it was poisoned." At the mention of the last part of Chris's sentence, the entire group paused.

"Beg pardon?" Amanda asked.

"Just a little. Nothing major, and that is your challenge. As you know, you have all been poisoned because of the food you ate. You're not gonna die from it, but if you don't drink the antidote soon, you're going to have one miserable night. You have until sundown tonight to find the antidote. To find it, you're going to need to complete a gauntlet of riddles to exercise your mind. The first team to get to the antidote is going to be the winner. Losing team will send someone home. If neither team gets to the antidote, then the team that does better will be the victors. Alright, better get started, clock is ticking. And work fast, it'll be hard to think when that poison starts working." Chris cackled madly as he started to walk away.

"Oh, that's it, you are so dead!" Kenny rolled up his sleeve and moved in to follow Chris, but Henry, Jake, and Nicolas were able to restrain him.

"Cool it. We can't get angry over every little sadistic thing he does." Nicolas tried to calm him.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Okay, I wanted to kill Chris too. I think we all did. But when there is a challenge to complete, we can't afford to get sidetracked by doling out what for to the host, as much as he deserves it. We can't afford another Eagle loss." Jake confided.

* * *

Kenny relented.

"Where do we begin?" He asked.

"While you were raging, Chris handed us this first scrap of paper." Diana replied. "It's a riddle, I'm guessing, since it's not a straight answer. It's a poem."

"Someone else read it. I hate poems." Kenny responded.

"Alright, Big Brother." Shannon took the paper from Diana, and read over it quietly for a minute.

"Figure anything out, Shan-ban?" Kenny asked.

"I don't know, it's really weird. Here, I'll read it out loud. Maybe that will help." She cleared her throat and started to recite the poem.

_Don't go down where the wild things are_

_Over and around, near and far_

_Cruel as it is, finding the first part requires_

_Killing yourself, and all your desires_

_Oh, don't worry, for you won't get hurt_

_For only your passions are the ones to be burnt_

_So give yourself up and forget your plans  
_

_Hold nothing, let it slip through your hands  
_

_And you'll discover the meaning of life  
_

_Mightily struggling at the end of a knife  
_

_'Ere before the night's end_

"What the hell was up with that? It doesn't make any sense, it drops off in the middle. I'd normally say don't quit your day job, but since Chris's day job is torturing us, I'm not sure which is worse." Diana groaned.

"I agree, this poem seems disjointed. Might I suggest that it isn't about the lyrics?" Martin posed. "Perhaps the answer lies elsewhere?" The Eagles sat down at their mess hall table to pour over the riddle.

* * *

The Cobras had taken their clue towards their cabin.

"Edward, make any sense of it?" Patrick immediately passed it off to their smartest player, who puzzled over it quietly.

"Any leads?" Daniel asked.

"Patience. We can't rush things. If we do, then we'll just end up in the wrong place or doing the wrong thing or whatever." Edward responded.

"May I see?" Amanda asked. Edward passed it to her as he started to think to himself.

"Typically, when you get clues like this that seem completely unrelated to what we're supposed to be doing, it's usually not the clue, it's the presentation. The poem has a standard couplet rhyme scheme, except for the ending, so it's not that." Edward responded.

"I don't see a beat rhythm or pentameter or any of that fancy crap." Bobby added on. "Plus, it's Chris. It's got to be something a lot simpler then what we're looking at." The Cobras waited in silence a little longer before Edward perked up.

"We're going to the campfire pit. Come on." Edward stood up off his bunk and bolted out the door.

"Where is he going?" Daniel asked.

"I get it now." Greg responded. "It's a word clue. Each letter on each line spells out a clue. In this case it's D-O-C-K O-F S-H-A-M-E. So, we're headed to the dock for our next clue. I mean it's so ridiculously simple, like cooking minute rice. Hey, Edward, wait up!" Greg bolted out following Edward.

* * *

When the Cobras were at the docks, they found that the Eagles were already there.

"What kept you?" Nicolas taunted.

"Didn't want to rush ahead blindly like your team?" Bobby replied with an indignant attitude.

"No mystery can hold the Eagles!" Neil cheered. The Cobras surveyed what was going on. The clue had pointed them to the Dock of Shame, and sure enough, Chris had placed two envelopes neatly on the dock. One marked with the Eagles' motif, and the other with the Cobras'.

"Don't try and throw ours into the lake." Bobby moved closely towards his clue.

"Maybe you Cobras play that way, but the Eagles play right." Shannon shouted.

"You mean like Ingrid?" Edward posed.

"And that's why she's gone?" Jake had already opened his team's envelope and started to read it, the other Eagles clustered around them and tried to ignore the Cobra's attempt to weaken them. Just like before, it was a simple typed sheet of paper. However, this was no poem, it was a riddle.

"Come on, Jake, share with us all." Nicolas commanded. Jake nodded, and started to read aloud.

"_If the next clue you wish to see_

_You must come and seek out me_

_Here's a hint to help you search_

_Find me uptop a lofty perch_

_Another thing to know before we meet_

_I just crave for something sweet"_

"It's better than the last one." Diana admitted. "And I can kind of make sense. So we're seeking something that's up really high?"

"High I can handle." Jake said confidently. "But there are many high places here, and high is all relative. The rest of the rhyme should be able to help us out. What lives in high places and craves sweet things."

"Well, what's sweet in nature?" Kenny asked. "I don't think they mean white sugar."

"Probably honey. Or nectar." Diana figured. "Maybe we're looking for a big-ass beehive?"

"Seems reasonable. I can't think of anything else." Neil returned. "Where can we find bees?"

"Leave that all to me!" Jake cheered as he climbed the nearest tall tree he could find.

* * *

The Cobras, however, were having trouble with their clue.

"Does anyone else feel hot?" Daniel asked. "That poison is making me all sweaty."

"I'm not." Edward responded. "Just calm down and breathe. Look at the riddle, maybe it'll calm you down." Daniel, however, wasn't taking it easy. He was breathing so hard Edward figured he was hyperventilating.

"You should be used to this stuff. There's less oxygen on the mountain."

"Yeah, but we're not running around poisoned. Amanda, you're a smartie, have you figured it out." Daniel was snappish and brief.

"We need to go higher. Something that eats fruit, maybe. What about a fruit bat?"

"Where are we supposed to find a bat?" Bobby asked. "I'm thinking bees."

"We can split up." Michelle responded. "Perch doesn't mean extremely high. Why don't we meet back here at the Dock of Shame later. Those who think it's a bat, go with Amanda to find a cave. Those that think it's bees, go with Bobby for a hive. We've got a bunch of us and the Eagles all do everything together. Splitting up might help us win the challenge." The Cobras broke ranks. Daniel, Edward, and Michelle went off with Amanda, while the rest went off with Bobby.

* * *

"Hey, Jake, did you find anything?" Diana called from the bottom of the trees. Jake had climbed on top of the trees and was searching around for a beehive, but found no luck. Keeping on the high ground, he started to scramble towards the cave.

"I thought there'd be a lot less surface area to cover, but man, is this tiring. I don't know if it's the poison or just the work, but this is so exhausting." Jake sat down in the branch to catch his breath. He scanned around the area, hoping to find the "lofty perch." He started moving towards the cliffs, hoping to catch the sign of something disturbed.

"Hey, hey guys!" He called down. "I think I see something in this cave over there. Someone else come up here!"

"On it!" Nicolas scaled the tree and made his way, carefully, over to Jake, who stood next to a cliffside, peering into a small natural window. Indeed, they saw something strange, and smelt something funky. They smelt the pungent aroma of rotting fruit, and when they peered into the cave, they saw a nest of what appeared to be sleeping bats. Nestled below the bats, on a ledge, lie another of Chris's envelopes.

"I think we see the next clue!" Jake shouted to the other team. "We can't reach it from here though. You'll have to find a way inside from down there. I'll stay up here, though. If I see you, I can guide you."

"Why did he hide it in a cave?" Nicolas wondered before he climbed down.

"He did say perch. That's not just on a tree branch. Caves and dark places are more your cup of tea, aren't they?" Nicolas shrugged at Jake's response.

"I suppose so. But what about the sweetness."

"Well, I'm not an expert, but I heard that some bats eat fruit. Just get going, who knows when the Cobras will show up." Nicolas climbed down the tree to regroup and relay his message to the other Eagles. While they searched around to find an entrance to the cave, Jake rested in the treetops. All that climbing and running around was exhausting him, and the fact that he was poisoned wasn't helping. He surveyed his surroundings, and saw a few of the Cobras moving towards the cave.

"Crap, Cobras!" He thought. Had they figured out the riddle? They must be behind then, if they were looking around here. But not far behind. Was there some way to stall them, make them go away? He wasn't sure how exactly to do that. They might even be able to see him from where they were. He could see them, after all. He repositioned himself on another branch out of sight.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I wanted to make some bear noises and scare 'em off, but if I did that, my comrades could have been frightened too. I could have dropped pine cones on them, but that would make them want to come there more. And I didn't have the time to think of something creative. I just had to hide out and hope they don't see me."

* * *

"Yo, Jake!" Edward called from the ground.

"Crap." Jake moaned quietly. He scampered his way down to a lower branch.

"Up in a tree?" Amanda asked.

"What better way to touch the sky? Nothing else up here."

"You didn't find anything?" Daniel, stuttering quite a bit "You can't have not found anything. C'mon, tell us."

"What's with Stutterbox?" Jake asked.

"I told him to calm down." Edward sighed. "But it doesn't seem to be doing any good."

"Why calm down? We've been poisoned. We should just dissolve the whole stupid team thing and find it." Daniel was quite impatient.

"Well, I suggest turning around. There's nothing over here, and I've been searching for a long time. Just one poisoned guy to another."

"Okay, thanks, we'll just look for some other bats then. Come on, guys." Daniel started to walk away.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"If this wasn't a competition, I'd believe Jake. But he's an Eagle, and we're Cobras. He's trying to lure us away from the caves. He definitely found something. We'll just let Daniel walk off. His panicky nature wasn't helping anyone anyway." Michelle confided.

* * *

The three Cobras stuck away from Jake's position, and watched him scamper back up the tree.

"So, something is there." Edward responded.

"He's looking at the cliff, but I don't see anything on the cliff itself. Maybe he can make out something inside?" Michelle stated

"We might be behind, but it's too be expected. Let's just see if we can find an Eagle as they come out of the cave and go in after them. We'll lose some time, but it's better than tipping everyone off and just making everything harder later on. Just watch and wait." Amanda strategized, and her plan payed off, for soon she saw Kenny emerging from the cave with an envelope in his hands.

"Perfect." Edward responded, then he stealthily made his way into the cave. He soon emerged with another envelope.

"I'm surprised the other team doesn't try to hide these. At least we can expect a fair fight." Edward had already torn the envelope open once he exited the cave, and started to pour over the message as the Cobras made their way back to the Dock of Shame to try and meet up with their separated group.

* * *

While the Cobras were assembling, the Eagles were on their way to the next clue. However, this one seemed confusing. Like the second clue, this one seemed to be more of a puzzle. However, instead of a group of couplets, it only had two lines written on it.

_Where it all began, it all ended_

_Click your heels and away you go_

"Wow, Chris ain't giving us a lot to work with, huh?" Nicolas thought.

"Well, I can kinda get what the allusions mean, but it makes no sense. Clicking your heels is to go home, like in _The Wizard of Oz_." Kenny responded.

"Do you think it is our cabin?" Martin asked.

"No. Remember that we've been getting the same clues in the same places as the Cobras. Home would be our cabin, but for them it's the Cobra cabin. That's two different places." Shannon returned. "Could it be where we first arrived?"

"That's the Dock of Shame. We've already been there." Jake returned. The Eagles puzzled over the clue for a little longer.

* * *

The Cobras too, were puzzling over the short clue. They had assembled at the Dock of Shame per the original instructions. Although Bobby seemed annoyed that Edward's group, not his, had found the clue, he said silent and puzzled over it.

"This clue really doesn't make any sense." Stella voiced. "We've been through our cabin and didn't find anything."

"Greg and I looked through the mess hall, too. It was the only other thing we could think off. No luck there. And trust me, it was tough when Chef thinks you're trying to steal food." Kelly frowned.

"So where is there no place like home?" Bobby asked. "Amanda? Any ideas? You've been batting a thousand thus far."

"I'm sorry, I don't know." She apologized. "We need to go back to where it all begins. But we've checked all the places that could be a beginning. We've checked our cabin, the mess hall, the places where Chris gives us our challenges, and the Dock of Shame. I'm not sure of any other beginnings."

"Come on, think harder." An extremely agitated Daniel started to freak out a little."We gotta get this antidote."

"Freak out much. Why don't you just take a nap. We can't think with your shouting." Stella chided.

"If I sleep..." Daniel started.

"Can someone gag him?" Greg mimicked what Bobby said to him before the talent show.

"I might know the answer. This thing says beginning, but we're thinking too broadly. What if it's when we all were poisoned. We need to go back to where that catered food was." Patrick, who had long been silent, made his voice heard. Everyone thought about it for a moment, but agreed to take a look and made their way towards the clearing near the mess hall. The sun was starting to go down as they made their way towards the shore. However, Edward noticed the Eagles were following them and gaining ground. They must have figured it out as well.

"Hoof it!" He called to his team. His group arrived first, but when they arrived, they didn't find any other envelopes. Instead, they saw Chris standing in front of a table, where several bottles of different colored liquids lay.

"You guys found us, and not a moment too soon. As I promised, the antidote is here. You just need to find out which bottle it is. Here's your final hint. Ahem." Chris cleared his throat before reading out the final poem.

_Drink me may have been Alice's mistake_

_But drink you must, or poison overtake_

_One bottle here will cure your woe_

_The other bottles are your eternal foe_

_I don't exist as your bloody best_

_Neither am I the untop a wave's crest_

_I'm not jealous for your affection_

_In fact, I'll give you one last direction_

_Drink me up before you fall_

_Because I'm not to be your last call_

"Enjoy! Just tell me which one you pick and I'll tell you if you get it right. You only get one choice, though. Good luck, dudes." Chris sat down on a chair and began filing his nails.

"Okay, so it's one of those five bottles. They appear to all have a different color." Martin studied the bottles. There didn't appear to be anything different about the bottles themselves, other then the colors. I can see a white one, a green one, two clear ones, and a red one."

"Two clear ones?" Kenny asked. "Wonder if that's important. Is there anything that you can tell that makes them different?"

"Not that I can see." Martin returned. "Perhaps we should narrow it down."

"It's gotta be a clear one." Neil responded. "Not your blood, which is red, not a wave crest, which is white, and not jealous, which is supposed to be green."

"We can't just pick one randomly, even if we can narrow it down to two." Shannon responded. She went to the table to pick up one of the clear bottles. As she picked it up, she saw Greg grab the bottle as well.

"No way are we letting you Eagles get the edge." Daniel called out. "We're not gonna be poisoned." Shannon and Greg tugged on the bottle for a while.

"Chill out you two, you'll break it." Diana came over. "Why don't we just use it together and..." Diana opened the lid of the bottle, and a strong smell nearly caused her to keel over.

"Okay, you guys can deal with that one first." She went over towards the other bottle as Shannon gave up the bottle to Greg. Diana opened up the other bottle and found there was no smell at all.

"That's what's different about them." She reported to her team. "Man, that was one awful smell."

"What'd it smell like?" Nicolas asked.

"Moonshine." She returned and examined the other clear bottle. "But this one doesn't smell at all. Does the riddle mention anything about smell?"

"Not that I see." Jake repeated the riddle aloud, and didn't remember anything about a smell being mentioned.

"Hmmm...It said it'd give us one more direction, but it just ended. That ain't a direction." Henry furrowed his brow. The Eagles sat in silence a brief second longer before Diana called Chris over.

"Chris, we choose this one." She mentioned, holding up the bottle in her hands.

"Are you sure?" The host asked. A few Eagles started to protest.

"If I'm wrong, kick me off. I'll kick myself off if I can. I know I'm right. Chris, it's this one."

"Okay then." Chris took a pregnant pause. "It looks like the Eagles are our winners! That's the antidote right there. Just drink a cup of that and you'll be fine."

"How did you get that. There wasn't any directions." Kenny asked.

"There was, wasn't there?" Henry added.

"Sure was. The last line said it wasn't the last call, right? Well, last call is when they stop serving alcohol, and that's all moonshine is."

"Heh, it takes a real delinquent to know that. Well done, Diana." Neil cheered.

"Wonder if Chris'll let us take that shine as our reward." Diana asked hopefully. Chris shook his head.

"Worth a shot." She chuckled.

* * *

The Cobras didn't look too happy at Diana's success.

"Hey, we'll share this with you when we're done." Shannon offered. Although the team was still upset at losing, they didn't refuse her offer. After becoming cured, they walked with slumped shoulders back to their cabin.

"Anyone feeling ill?" Amanda asked once they had all gotten together. No one answered her question.

"Wow, we really got served some humble pie." Michelle responded.

"Wonder who cost us?" Kelly asked. "We did split up, but I don't really think that did it."

"Let's not discuss that. I still have a stomachache." Edward lay down on his bed.

"From the poison?" Greg asked.

"No, from all those wings I ate. Man, that was a mistake."

* * *

"Welcome, campers, to the sixth elimination ceremony. You've all cast your votes and made your decision. There are nine Cobras here, and after tonight, there will only be eight. When I call your name, come and get a marshmallow. Now, I know you're all really cranky and annoyed right now, so I'm just going to cut to the chase. Come on up, Kelly." Chris spoke his campfire speech to the annoyed Cobras. At the sound of her name, Kelly came up and grabbed her prize.

"Amanda." The fashionista walked up and grabbed the second bit of safety.

"Greg." Chris called. A loud cheer brought him up.

"Patrick." The singer came up and grabbed his marshmallow.

"Stella." He called before Patrick had even reached the plate. He picked up both marshmallows and passed it to Stella, who chuckled at his generosity.

"Michelle." Michelle grabbed her prize quickly, giving it a quick kiss before eating it.

"Edward." Michelle threw her marshmallow over to Edward, who grabbed it as Michelle grabbed another from the plate.

"This is the final marshmallow. Bobby or Daniel, one of you will be out." Chris called over to the last two men. Both seemed extremely nervous, Daniel was wringing his hands out, while beads of sweat were visible on Bobby's brow.

"Bobby." Chris flung the marshmallow to him, who caught it with his mouth.

"Daniel, that's the end for you, dude." With a sigh, Daniel stood up and started to walk down the docks, skis and luggage in hand.

"It was just too hard to work with you freaking out." Amanda responded sympathetically. "Good luck on the slopes." He smiled at her, and boarded the boat. The other campers stood on the dock and waved him goodbye before retreating back to their cabin.

_Votes_

**Daniel: **Amanda, Bobby, Edward, Greg, Kelly, Michelle, Patrick, Stella

**Bobby: **Daniel


	8. Crappy Camp Songs

_"Last time on Total Drama Island. The campers put their brains to the test when they served a delicious, poisoned, meal. The Eagles took an early lead in deciphering the clues to find the antidote. Jake tried to scare the Cobras away from the clues, and Diana managed to discover the secret to last clue by determining that it wasn't moonshine. It was the Cobras who were sent to the bonfire, where Daniel's panicky and frantic nature during the challenge stopped the two smarties, Amanda and Edward, from fully getting the challenge done, and ski boy was sent home. It's all tied up between the two teams. Who will pull ahead, and who just isn't cut out. Find out tonight on Total...Drama...Island." _

"Whew, this is such a wonderful morning." Kelly stretched and got out of bed. "Such a clear, sunny day with enough clouds to grant a quick reprieve.

"Wow, you're cheerful this morning, army." Stella replied from her bunk. "Get a glimpse of the next challenge?"

"No, but we gotta perk up or we're just gonna lose!"

"Yeah, now that's the excitement we need." Greg called from his own bunk. "Now we need to get you an ice weasel to whisper in your ear."

"Okay, now you've lost me." Kelly scowled. "Why can't we just have a normal morning."

"Because normal is boring. Come on, let's all wakey wakey and get ready. Chris won't poison us again for a while, so now we can eat."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Yeah, everything gonna be all fun now, since Kelly snapped out of her gloomy rigid army way. We can pull ahead easily. We just need an abject lack of focus." Greg confided.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Greg is completely insane. It's odd because he's so smart, and fairly strong, he could be dominating these challenges easily if he'd just pay attention. I know they say that all geniuses have quirks, but he's quirky enough to be smarter then our entire team put together. Then again, if Greg focused, it would be the Apocalypse." Kelly confessed.

* * *

"Good morning campers." Chris greeted the campers in the mess hall. "Your next challenge is going to be a summer camp classic with a new twist."

"Like...poison?" Bobby sneered.

"No, although there might be some poison involved, bro. I'm talking about the classic of camping."

"Camping? So we're going out in the woods at night? That's not too bad." Nicolas smiled.

"Pretty much, although I did say there'd be a twist. You're going to go out into the woods with some raw supplies, and you're going to find your own campground. Your challenge isn't going to be to just go camping, it's going to be to construct the best campsite for wilderness survival. Get shelter from animals and the elements, make sure you're close to food and water, and to be noticeable in case a rescue plan flies by. You'll be judged by all of these factors. The team that performs the best will win a reward, and the losers will be sending someone home. Alright then, here's a map of the area. Choose your locations wisely, dudes. See you tomorrow."

* * *

The Cobras marched out into the woods, determined to make up for their previous failure.

"We need to find something that can be clearly seen from the sky. We can probably put our tent and other stuff under some trees to help against the rain, but we'll need an area where we can clearly be seen from the sky." Bobby doled out instructions. "It would be nice if we could see things from the air ourselves, but we'll have to make due."

"There's a river in the woods. Let's follow that and fan out." Amanda added. Bobby nodded in agreement, and the Cobras started to set out to her instructions.

* * *

The Eagles were taking a very leisurely pace. Nicolas was excited at the prospect of such adventure, and Jake took to the trees, eager to be outside once more. He claimed that he could help get a more bird's eye view and see which areas could be seen better, but the rest of the team figured he'd give any excuse to get up in the trees. The team decided to look at spaces that could first be seen from the air, and then decided to see if it was close to shelter and food.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This challenge is ours to win." Nicolas confided. "Jake's real outdoorsy, Kenny can build stuff, and the rest of the team are no slouches either. We just need to pick the right place and put on a good show for Chris tomorrow."

* * *

The Eagles chose the place for their campsite fairly quickly. Rather than pick a place that was right out in the open, Jake opted to select an area that was well-protected from the sun, and far enough from the water to avoid the attentions of animals, yet close enough to gather fish. They also opted for the high ground, to get a better view of the area. Nicolas was laughing as the campers started to set up their supplies. He couldn't help but replay their impending victory over and over in his mind.

"Okay, let's get started. No time to waste." Kenny brought him back into reality.

"Diana and I shall take care of assembling the supplies we brought." Martin replied. "Leave the tent to us."

"I'll make a fire, I can do that pretty easily." Nicolas offered.

"I'll go over to the clearing with Jake." Kenny responded. "We'll work on making something for a rescue plane to find."

"Guess Shan and I are taking care of food, then. That's fine with me, I've lived on a farm and I know what's edible. Yee-haw, come on, girl!" Henry grabbed Shannon by the hand and started to move away from the campsite.

* * *

The Cobras chose a location that was more open, so that it could be seen more easily. Amanda and Edward immediately started assembling things, leaving Bobby to delineate other tasks. Kelly had volunteered to go fishing for food, and Greg offered to go along as well. Patrick had left to construct something that would be easily visible in the nearby trees, leaving Stella to handle any remaining duties that would come along.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I'm actually glad that they stuck me with the leftovers." Stella confided. "I'm really not that great in the woods. I mean, who would give a concert out here? Outdoor venues are fine, but not in the woods. All the animals, the bugs. Nature is best spoken of in songs."

* * *

In the river, Kelly was wading through the water, attempting to fish with a harpoon. Greg had offered to use it, but Kelly rejected it, being more familiar with it. So Greg stuck with standing on a log that crossed the banks and used a net to fish anything out. Eventually, Kelly looked over to see what Greg had caught, and, surprisingly, found quite a bit of fish.

"You're not bad at this, hon." Kelly praised, looking at the wriggling masses her teammate had caught on the river banks.

"I'm getting mostly small fry though." Greg returned. "You got the ones with meat. Fish have bones cause their vertebrates, you know. Where'd you learn to harpoon these things? I couldn't do that like you."

"From Dad." She replied.

"Mr. Army?"

"Yeah. Dad taught me everything about survival training. He told me once: 'Kell, you never know what this world is going to through at you. You could be fighting for your life in an instant, and you need to know what to do in any situation. I guess it's to be expected though. After...after Mom died, he always taught me to take care of myself."

"That's sad. What happened?" Greg asked in his usual chipper tone, displaying neither sensitivity nor callousness. Kelly looked at him quizzically, as if puzzled that he would ask something so serious with such light-heartedness.

"Sorry. Dense. My mom says that a lot. Just thought I'd ask the obvious question."

"It's okay." Kelly responded. "I'm not mad. My mom was the victim of a hit and run. I was five, I think. I don't remember too well. All I really remember about her are the Christmas carols she sang." Greg sighed wistfully at her comments, and his eyes started to mist over.

"You got that though. I never met my dad. My mom never talked about him, but..." he trailed off. "Aah, you don't wanna hear me get all weepy."

"No, I'd...I'd like to hear it, since you offered."

"Well, like I said I don't really know." Greg's normal rapid pace slowed, if ever so slightly. "When I was real little, something really bad happened. I don't know what the result was, but my dad disappeared. Finito, that's all. Mom took down all the pictures, and never spoke of him again. The only stuff I know is second-hand information from my big brother, and he doesn't talk about it either. Of course, I don't know if he's alive, or dead, or somewhere in between. So, my mom was all I had, and she never did stuff like that. She was real rigid and proper-like. Always had to sit still, and use the right fork. And if you acted out, well, you got the switch across the back of the hand. Like machine gun fire, she was with that switch. But that's enough sad stories. We've got a lot of fish in a little bit of time. Wanna forage for berries and mushrooms and stuff? Edward might know what's good for us if we bring him a bunch of stuff."

"Nah, we don't really need that. Not yet, anyway. Besides, I'm sure Stella will take care of that."

"I'm surprised you remembered to bring your bathing suit." Greg commented on her attire.

"Well, I figured we'd have to fish, and I couldn't very well do it in my normal clothes." Kelly speared another fish. "Care to join me?"

"Swim? With you? Didn't bring my trunks. But what the hell, sounds fun!" Greg cheered. He stripped to his boxers quickly and jumped in.

"Make out in the water?" Greg asked. Kelly smiled, laughed harder then she had in a long time, and placed the harpoon on the log. This day was getting better and better.

* * *

Kenny and Jake went a ways over to find a nearby clearing. They decided to plan out what they needed today, and place it tomorrow, just in case it rained or was windy or some other hazard dreamed up by Chris would destroy it. Jake decided it would easier to set up something that spelled "SOS" while Kenny spelled out "HELP" on the ground. For Jake, however, it was much more difficult at first, as Kenny had things he could use to spell out with on the ground. Kenny, however, had planned ahead for that, and brought as many of his bright-colored shirts as he had. He seemed to have told Shannon and Nicolas about it too, and Jake soon found himself with an abundance of material.

"Wow, you came prepared to win this game." Jake was impressed by his foresight.

"We can't afford to laze around just because it's early in the game." Kenny responded. "We need to have the advantage come the merger, or the Cobras will just pick us off. Right now, I've got a solid team. There is, however, room for one more." Kenny looked at Jake seriously, his mouth changing from cheerful smile to knifelike slash in a second.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"If I had to pick anyone that was prepared for winning this game, it's Kenny. He acts like a brainless lunk, but he's got a dangerous mind. It wouldn't do well to make him think I'm the enemy. I'll ride his alliance for now, but I've got to be prepared to boot him out when the time comes. That'll be hard, because I could never break him and Shannon." Jake confided

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I just want to be clear on something. Making an alliance does not make you evil or manipulative or bossy or anything like that. It's just a strategy. My team of me, Shannon, Henry, and Nicolas is solid, it'll see us through just about anything. If I can get Jake on our team, that would make our team even better. I don't know what the Cobras are going to do once the team merge happens, so I need to be prepared to take the high ground so they don't pick me off. It's not personal. I really owe a lot to Edward for what he told us about Ingrid. But I know he's the brains on the Cobra team, and that makes him a threat to my money." Kenny reported.

* * *

Back at camp, Diana and Martin started to work on the tent. All of the campers could fit in that tent, but everyone would be really crammed. However, Jake had mentioned before that he slept outdoors, and it would be simple enough to make a hammock for him from one of the extra tarps. Nicolas was quiet as those two worked. It was his job to make a fire so that, when Henry came back, there would be something to cook the food with. The last thing that should happen on a challenge like this was getting sick on raw fish, especially just after that challenge where they spent all day poisoned. He was having more trouble than he thought he would. Getting a small kindling was fairly easy, but getting it to stay was much harder.

"Any luck?" Diana asked. She took a break from hammering in a tent peg to check on her teammate.

"I'll get it. I'll be fine." Nicolas returned. "Just get back on getting all the other stuff up. We're not going to lose this challenge."

"Relax, buddy." Diana sighed wistfully. "You're not going to win by burning out. Besides, we're all capable here. We'll win. I mean, the Cobras are so busy fighting each other and panicking."

"They voted out Daniel. I didn't see him at breakfast today. Besides, they always surprise us. Amanda, and especially Greg. With Army on their team, we can't afford to take a chance. We'll win if we do our best, but we have to do that."

"I'm talking about the others. I doubt Patrick and Stella know their way around a campground." Diana reminded.

"We didn't think Patrick could climb the cliff either, but he did. I'd just rather not lose any more Eagles. Going to campfire is depressing."

"Yeah, I guess. Though weeding out those two girls was worth it. Alright, I'll stop bugging you since you're against small talk." Diana returned to using a tarp to make a hammock for Jake.  


* * *

Over at the Cobra campground, Bobby had assigned Stella the job of starting a fire and boiling some water. She had absolutely no idea where to start; she had never started a fire before. Although Bobby had given her some instruction before he went off to construct a perimeter to deal with animals, she still was completely lost. Everyone else was lost in their own constructions. She tried to create sparks with flint, but she couldn't get them to burn. She then decided it would be better to get the water first. Maybe she could find someone who wasn't so busy to give her a hand. When she reached the lake, she saw Greg and Kelly just a little bit downstream. They were supposed to be fishing, but it seemed they were just having a grand old time.

"Hey!" She called out to them. Greg immediately pulled himself out the water.

"Jeez, turn around. The water's making your shorts see-through." Stella averted her gaze. Greg didn't seem to care, but he ducked back into the water to oblige.

"We've got plenty of fish." Kelly responded. "We're about to head back."

"Yeah, not before having a little grope fest?" Stella accused, crossing her arms. If those two had enough time to play around, they could be helping her make a fire.

"What, you can't do a job? At least we did ours before we stopped." Kelly was cross.

"I gotta get a fire started. I've never done that before."

"Neither have I, but that doesn't mean I can't do it. Come on, Kelly, let's show Stella how it's done." Greg got up from the water and went back towards camp. Kelly and Stella followed. After Greg changed out of his wet boxers and put his old clothes back on, he moved over to the pit Stella had dug. He placed some dry grass and sticks and started making sparks. Soon, he had a small flame going, which Kelly immediately took over to nurture.

"See? How hard was that. It's all about patience and control." Greg cheered.

"Two things you don't have." Bobby's voice sounded. "Greg, you and Kelly are back, I see. Stella, looks like they got the fire done."

"After I pulled them out from their making out in the river." She defended herself.

"Really? Well, that's a problem." Bobby looked over towards Greg.

"We've got plenty of fish for everyone." Greg held up a bucket full of fish.

"Problem solved. Stella, go boil that water once the fire's up. I guess Kelly will be taking care of the fish then." Bobby left to get back to work, shaking his head at Stella.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I think I just made things worse for me." Stella confided. "I'm fine with the fact that those two got their fish before playing around, but seriously, we have other stuff to do here, and outdoors stuff is not my strongpoint. This is bad. If we don't win this challenge, I think I might be the one on the chopping block. I know that Greg and Bobby aren't very close, but Kelly might be able to convince him. I've gotta makes sure we win or I'm gone."  


* * *

Night was starting to fall over the Eagles camp. Nicolas was eventually able to get a fire going, and Henry had fished out an excellent catch. Not being good at the fishing herself, Shannon had picked some wild berries instead, stating that she was able to recognize the fruit, and they were safe to eat. Not eager to be poisoned again, the other campers were thankful for her knowledge.

"Looks like we did good in this challenge, guys. And Shan, those berries make the fish taste much better. We did great!" Neil smiled.

"I'm just glad I was able to help out." She replied. "We all did our part. Right, Big brother?" She asked. Kenny nodded.

"All we need to do is get everything set up tomorrow for the rescue plane to see." Jake responded. "I didn't want to leave everything up in case it rained."

"Do you think it will rain?" Martin asked.

"It smells like rain." Nicolas returned. "We probably should turn in soon. Jake, you might want to re-think sleeping in a hammock tonight. We could place that tarp over the tent entrance. Keep us dry more in case of wind." It was too dark to see cloud cover in the sky, but a distant sound of thunder caused Jake to nod as he and Martin started to disassemble his hammock.  


* * *

The Cobras were feeling a little tense as the night came down. Most of the group was separate; Amanda and Edward had heard a distant lightning flash and, along with Michelle, were trying to make sure the tent stakes were more secure. Kelly and Bobby had been talking, which was worrying Stella, so, she sat alone and confessed her concerns to Patrick, who was the only one who seemed to understand her.

"So, I'm worried that Kelly will get Bobby on her side to kick me out if things go wrong. I'm real worried. I mean, the Eagles get along so great and they've got Nicolas who's all Indiana Jones about this sort of stuff." Patrick listened quietly as Stella spoke. He started to think deeply.

"Well, I wouldn't worry about it. Bobby and I are tight as far as alliances go, so if things go wrong, we have a plan. We might not be able to boot out Kelly, but it would be easy to go after Amanda. Bobby and Edward clash like no other, and that guy's sweet on Amanda. It would be easy to boot her out."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I'm ashamed to admit it, but Bobby and I don't have an alliance. We never cemented it, and he might not be interested anymore. I just needed to say something to get Stella to relax. I'm pretty sure Bobby will still be interested if I pose it right to him. He said it himself that the smart guys should stick together. I gotta play it cool though. I can't look desperate. I've got a backup plan, though. If that doesn't work, I'll try to work with Edward on eliminating Bobby, Edward finds him really annoying, and 'Manda's smart enough to plan things without him. These two camps in the Cobra team will work to my and Stella's advantage." Patrick confessed.  


* * *

A loud thunderclap interrupted everyone's thoughts.

"The tent, quickly." Kelly quickly moved into the tent with the rest of the Cobras following. Sure enough, soon a torrent of rain washed across the area.

"Patrick, it's very windy out there." Bobby noted. "Is that going to knock down what you set up for the rescue plane?"

"Yeah." Patrick sighed. "We'll have to wake up early tomorrow."

"Well, when you sleep outside, you tend to wake up early. Try to ignore the rain and the storm and the all that and get a little shut eye. We'll need it." Kelly spouted rapidly before falling asleep.

Patrick however, didn't sleep very well. He couldn't help but think of everything that Stella had told him. He was quite certain their team would lose today. And that, at least partially, it was Stella's fault. No one else did anything to mess up like her, but honestly, what else did everyone do. The tent had sprung a few leaks, and that might be ammunition to take out Amanda or Michelle, but no one would really think that instead of Stella not starting the fire. There had to be a way to save her. And that thought kept him awake for most of the night.  


* * *

The next morning was a good one for the Eagles. Their campground held up relatively well in the storm.

"Okay, we're going to set everything up for the rescue plane." Jake called. "We'll be back in time for Chris." He and Kenny bounded off with bundles of clothes in their hands.

"I kinda wish we had saved some dry grass to start a fire." Nicolas responded. "I don't think we can get this wet grass to spark."

"We're going to have to make due, since the fish is all gone anyway. We've still got some berries left." Shannon responded. "Try to get a fire going so we can boil water. That'll look better when Chris inspects the camp."  


* * *

Over at the Cobra camp, however, things were much less harmonious. The Cobras had set their camp on lower ground, so there was quite a bit of standing water around the campsite. It certainly put a damper on the morning attitude.

"Who picked this campsite?" Bobby asked.

"It was a group decision." Kelly shrugged. "Come on, let's just dredge this out."

"We're not going to do well if there's water here. Patrick, get on that rescue thing, stat! Greg, start another fire." Bobby was aggressively doling out orders as he worked with Kelly on trying to make a furrow for the water to remove itself. The Cobras worked frantically and to the point of exhaustion getting their camp ready.  


* * *

"Welcome, Eagles." Chris called out towards the team as he entered their campground.

"Why, hello, Chris." Martin, ever the savvy talker, was elected to be the representative. "Does the Lord greet you well today?"

"I suppose. I'm just here to investigate your campground. You seem to be missing a few nestlings." Chris checked around the campsite

"There just getting everything ready for the final bit of the challenge. Chris, we've gathered some berries and boiled some water, would you care to join us for a quick bite?" Martin offered politely.

"Nah, I ate some steak and eggs earlier, dude, but major points for the bribe attempt." Chris smiled. "It looks like your camp weathered fairly well in last night's storm. Alright, I'm headed over to check out the Cobra camp. The plane will be flying overhead in one hour, so make sure you're ready. Just remember that it's the campfire for your team if you lose. Good luck, dudes."

Over at the Cobra camp, however, Chris was less enthusiastic. It was quite clear that the Cobras worked hard to get it ready, it seemed as if they had torn the ground up. They appear to have dug small divots into the ground for water to flow out of the campground.

"Points for trying, but picking a site on the lower ground is bad news." Chris remarked.

"Hello Chris." Amanda came up to greet him. "How are you this morning?"

"Better than this campground. What are you doing here."

"Just sprucing up." Amanda was on point and focused, cleanly deflecting Chris's questions. He silently noted to give her an extra point for her tremendous effort.

"Alright, so I've seen what I need to see here. The plane comes in one hour. Make sure you're ready for it. Remember, There's a reward if you win, and the Dock of Shame for one of you if you don't.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"The Eagles had a superior campsite, but the Cobras managed to recover really well from some of their initial bad choices, which makes the score too close to call. Without the plane flying over, no one is going to be a clear winner today." Chris confided.  


* * *

An hour passed slowly for the Eagles. Jake and Kenny were on top of things, they said, and required no more help. The others saw no sense in going over then. They idled their time. The Cobras trusted Patrick to handle things over there, but their hour went by more swiftly, as they still worked to get the last of the standing water away so that their shoes wouldn't get ruined.

Inside an old plane, Chris looked out over the forest. He came across the Eagles' site first. He was impressed at what they managed to do. In brightly-colored red, pink, and yellow letters, presumably put together from tied-up shirts, they spelled out S.O.S. in the trees. Although it was impressive, Chris noted that it was rather far away from their campsite. That was going to hurt them. He then took the plane over towards the Cobra's campsite.

"Okay, so I'm looking for a sign that says help me....I..." Chris surveyed the area, but he couldn't see anything. He passed over it again just to be sure, but sure enough, saw that there was nothing there that would attract attention.

"That was disappointing. But easy." He thought. He grabbed his megaphone and shouted outside the cockpit doors.

"Eagles win!" He shouted several times. The Eagles cheered ecstatically once they heard and sang a happy tune as they deconstructed their campsite. The Cobras, however, were sour, and gazes turned to Patrick, but no words were spoken.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam_)_  
"_I didn't construct anything for the rescue plane to see." Patrick confessed. "I figure that Bobby or whoever will go over and see that, then they'll vote me out. I tried to talk strategy with them, but everyone was so concerned because Stella and I were tight, and they thought I was just trying to not get her booted. This is the only way I can keep her in the game. Rock on, babe. I'm gonna miss you."  


* * *

Back at camp, Chris had parked his derelict plane in front of the cabins.

"Eagles, drop your bags off and put your nice clothes on. As soon as the campfire ceremony is over for the Cobras, we're taking the helicopter to civilization and going out for a night on the town. Get some decent nosh and a good party to boot." Eager for the idea of other human contact, the Eagles cheered and rushed into their cabin. The sound of friendly competition for the mirror and the showers emanated from the cabin,

"Cobras, I'm disappointed. Your camp was a mess, and I didn't see anything remotely like an SOS or anything. Have too much fun camping? Can't forget those challenges. I'll see you tonight at campfire." Chris chided.

"And I suppose we dredge ground for fun." Kelly groaned. "I'm getting changed."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"It's really up in the air who's going to go at this point, but I do know that it's not me, and that's good." Michelle confessed. "It would be nice to get rid of Bobby since he's a jerk, but I doubt that will work today. I think I'll just let Amanda and Edward help me decide since they're better at strategy then me."  


* * *

"Welcome, campers. This is the seventh, and your fourth, Campfire Ceremony. You've all cast your votes and made your decisions. When I call your name, come up, and grab a marshmallow. If I don't call your name, you're out, and must walk the Dock of Shame, and board the Boat of Losers. The first marshmallow goes to Greg." Chris announced

"Oh yeah, that's it! Yeah!" He cheered.

"Michelle, Bobby, Edward. All of you, excellent job." The three safe campers now grabbed their marshmallows and joined Greg on the other side of Chris.

"Amanda, come on up." She shot a smile and a knowing look to Edward as she went up and got her marshmallow.

"Kelly." She walked up to get her marshmallow, leaving Patrick and Stella remaining without one. Stella started to get nervous, while Patrick seemed nonchalant.

"The last marshmallow...goes to Stella."

"No way!" Stella called. "You voted out Patrick?"

"Stella, calm down. They made their decision. Whether or not it will bite them later is up to the votes. Later guys." Patrick, not even the least bit distressed, started to walk down the dock.

"I had fun, Greg. Later 'Manda." He greeted the rest of his former teammates, Michelle giving him a quick hug. He walked past and looked right towards Bobby.

"It's what you wanted, right?" Bobby asked. Patrick only gave the slightest hint of a nod.

"The outcome could have been better, but this was the best I could do to still get what I wanted. Later, B-man." He high-fived his fellow competitor and boarded the boat. As it started to leave the dock, he watched the other campers waving goodbye. Stella seemed to be confused about what exactly to do at this moment, so she pulled out her guitar and started to strum some notes.

"Give us some tunes!" She called. Patrick launched into impromptu singing until they could no longer hear his voice.

"Well, then Cobras, enjoy yourselves in your cabins tonight. The Eagles and I will be hitting the town and painting it red." Chris departed towards the Eagles's cabin.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Once I heard that there was nothing to signal the plane with during the challenge, I knew what Patrick was doing. There was no way we were going to keep Stella around unless he did something worse. He should just consider himself lucky I had enough respect for him to honor his wish." Edward confided.  


* * *

_Votes_

**Patrick: **Amanda, Bobby, Edward, Michelle

**Stella: **Greg, Kelly

**Kelly: **Patrick, Stella


	9. Training Day

_"Last time on Total Drama Island. The campers went camping to showcase their wilderness survival skills. Greg and Kelly got a lot closer, while Stella argued that they didn't do their work, she only drew attention to the fact that she wasn't good at all this stuff. On the Eagles' side, Kenny warmed up to Jake and offered him a spot in his alliance, which Jake casually accepted. Good planning, bro. With a superior campsite choice and an SOS signal you could see from space, the Eagles won the challenge, sending the Cobras to the bonfire. However, Patrick, in an amazing display of chivalry, sabotaged his own work during the challenge so that the other campers would boot him instead of Stella, and it was goodbye to Patrick. Can the Cobras win the next challenge? Will Kenny's alliance grow even further? Did my agent remember to get me a higher salary? Find out the answers to these and other burning questions tonight on Total...Drama...Island._

Diana awoke with a heavy throbbing in her head. Through blurred vision, she looked around. She was in the Eagles's cabin, along with the rest of her team, but everything seemed very strange to her. Her teammates were lying around as if they had collapsed. Some were only partially lying on their beds, and no one was dressed for sleep. Diana tried to concentrate and remember what could have led to this, but her aching mind did not agree with her.

"Mornin'" Henry responded to Diana. He was the only one awake at the time, and he appeared to be nursing a massive headache. The sound of his voice was loud and oppressive, but Diana tried to ignore her throbbing head.

"What did we do last night?"

"Well, we won that reward, so, after the bonfire, Chris took us in the helicopter towards this massive party. I remember we ate some decent food, and then we started getting on the dance floor. We were drinking those drinks Chris had gotten for us, and now, we're here." Diana chuckled at Henry's exposition. She knew what had happened now.

"Chris must've spiked them as a prank. He sure pulled one on us. Come on, let's wake everyone up. We're going to need water before Chris gives us the next challenge, or we're just going to lose big time." The two started to wake everyone else up. They groaned and moaned just as much as Diana did, but soon they were able to get to their feet.

"Time for brekky, dudes." Chris opened the door to the cabin. At the sight of the Eagles, he started to giggle uncontrollably.

"What?" Kenny asked. "We're all dressed."

"No, not that, dude. You all really let yourselves go last night."

"Because someone spiked our drinks." Diana growled. Chris just laughed even harder.

"So, tell us, Chris, what's the damage?" Nicolas asked. "Underage drinking can't be good for lawsuits, can it?"

"Hey, now, who said anything about underage drinking? I did nothing of the sort." Chris responded. Diana was about to protest, but realized he was right. They couldn't prove anything.

"You weren't too bad, Nicolas. But Martin, Shannon, and Jake? Oh man, I've never seen some of the things I saw there. Some things I'd never want to see again. Like Martin on the stripper pole." Chris started to laugh again.

"I...beg your pardon?" Martin asked. Chris kept laughing even harder.

"Well, get ready you guys. The challenge is going to start in an hour." Chris started to leave the cabin, but got in one more round of laughter before departing.

"I...I did not do such a thing." Martin was indignant. "How could he..."

"Awww, nothing in the Book against teasing." Diana joked.

"There is about adultery!" Martin seemed almost irate at his own actions.

"I don't think you went that far, chill. Come on, everyone. Let's just not worry about what happened last night. He'll forgive you, won't he?" Diana tried to soothe him. Martin's breaths slowed down, and he started to calmly find his shoes.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"That preach." Diana confessed. "He acts all calm and collected, and quotes those random Biblical things I don't remember, but boy, he has a temper on him at times. I wonder if he'd be any good in a street fight."

* * *

In the mess hall, the Cobras were already eating as the Eagles sat down.

"Do you think booting Patrick was the right decision?" Amanda asked Edward once he had sat down beside her.

"It's what he wanted." Edward hushed his voice so Stella wouldn't overhear. "Anyone who wants to leave isn't going to help us in challenges. I just hope it doesn't make Stella despondent. We really can't stand for another Cobra loss."

Bobby slammed down his cup of coffee.

"Cobras, we need to stop wasting time looking back at all our failures. All I've been hearing is Daniel this, Patrick that. They're gone. Unless Chris pulls some psychotic stunt like last season, they aren't back until the finale. So why don't we just eat this disgusting slop, get on the challenge, and move out, got it?"

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Bobby's only real strongpoint is that he can provide some excellent strategies." Edward confided. "However, Amanda can do that too. If we lose next, he's going to be my pick to vote off. Unless Stella is all dejected and doesn't do anything; the rest of us are too valuable to lose."

* * *

"Okay, campers. I hope you're ready for the next challenge." Chris called out to the dining campers.

"Can we wait an hour?" Kenny asked. "I think I'm still seeing double."

"No." Chris flatly shot his request down. "We're going to give you the most nail-biting, hardcore team challenge we could think of. This is going to push your teamwork, critical thinking, and strategy, to the limit."

"Nice. I'm all over this challenge. What are we doing, Chris?" Edward responded. "There's no need to be eating this crap anymore." Once the campers were finished eating, Chris led them outside of the mess hall and towards the woods. Eventually, they came across some train tracks.

"Are we following these?" Michelle asked.

"They should have been here by now." A cross Chris checked his watch, then he heard a train whistle blow as an old, long locomotive pulled in front of them. The campers stared at the train puzzling over what Chris could be pulling with such a stunt.

"This train locomotive is 15 cars long. One team is going to start at the back of the car, and their goal is to reach the front of the car and sound the whistle. The other team, is going to pull as many tricks as they can to prevent you from doing that for as long as possible. You'll have ten minutes maximum. After that, the teams will switch, and the other team is going to have to try to get to the train car faster. The defending team are going to be using paint ball guns to help stop you, and if you're shot and you pull the whistle, any paint balls that hit you are going to be a time penalty for your team. The defending team cannot have anyone in the whistle car itself, and no one can leave the train, if you ever set foot outside of the train, you're out. The fastest time will win a reward, and the losers will be sending someone home." Chris announced the challenge. As he spoke, Edward seemed to be getting even more excited about this challenge the more Chris talked.

"It's not going to be another one of your nights on the town, right?" Diana asked. Chris chuckled again.

"No, but you'll be treated to an evening out just the same. You'll be getting a five-star dinner and a show."

"It's not Chef in drag riding a unicycle juggling chainsaws, is it?" Greg asked.

"No." Chris responded. "But you'll have a good time all the same. I guarantee it. Eagles, you'll be on offense first. You have five minutes to get into defensive positions. And...begin!"  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This challenge is a lot different from the other challenges we've been doing, but I'm actually pretty excited about it." Jake replied. "There's a lot of creative freedom you can take with this. We can split up, go in a group, or go in small groups. However we want to go about it. This might be helpful for our team. If anyone's still got a really bad hangover, like me, they can sit in the back or be a decoy."  


* * *

"Let's not get lazy." Kenny prepped his team before the game starts. "We're going to win this round and make it three in a row for Eagles. So, we've got fifteen cars."

"We want the person who pulls the whistle to not have any paintballs on them, so we want to make sure we sneak appropriately." Nicolas stood up to offer his opinion.

"I gots an idea!" Henry shouted. He and Nicolas started discussing strategy with each other, ignoring everyone else. Shannon tried to interject, but the two talked right over her. She turned towards Kenny, who only looked at them and listened.

"Hang on." He told her quietly. "Timing is everything."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I'm surprised my big brother isn't planning all of the strategies. He likes to write himself off and just let me act like the brains, but he's really much smarter than me. If he was the one planning this, we'd need maybe five minutes. I don't get why he's does what he does." Shannon confessed  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"All of our challenge wins thus far have come from assigning the right people to the job, proper planning, and creative thinking. Now, I trust Henry and Nicolas, but when it comes to creative thinking, the only thing better than me is Shannon. However, unless you place it at the right time, it's just going to get ignored. That's the lesson Shannon needs to learn. Patience is a virtue." Kenny reported.  


* * *

"So, we're in agreement, then?" Nicolas asked. "That's the way to do it."

"Your strategy works well, but there's a better way to get into the front for the person pulling the whistle." Kenny responded. "Shannon, if you would." Shannon was surprised that he just told her to state her thoughts without even knowing what they were, but she continued to speak her idea. When she delivered her response, Neil brightened, and Diana immediately pledged her support to that decision.

"Let's do it!" She smiled. Shannon became elated at how her thoughts were accepted so quickly, and immediately set about to do her task.  


* * *

Near the whistle car, the Cobras were delivering strategies of their own.

"Fan out. Chris said we could restrain them in anyway, but paint balls are a time penalty." Bobby ordered. "We should focus on blocking doorways with our bodies and then using paint balls. If they're going to pull it, they need to be penalized."

"We won't need to ambush or anything. We haven't the numbers. Space ourselves out randomly so they don't know what to expect. Make sure to check the sides and the roof as well." Edward added. "They can't leave the train, but that's technically not leaving the train."  


* * *

The contest was underway quickly. The Eagles moved along quietly, deigning to stay separate. Diana crept along the side of the train, as Chris only mentioned she had to set foot outside the train to be disqualified. Jake decided that he would serve as decoy, and moved straight through the cars. He made no effort to be silent, although he didn't go out of the way to make his presence known. He went through the first two cars with no problem, but ran straight into Stella when he reached the third. Nonchalantly, she pummeled him with paint balls. She didn't make any effort to stop him or slow him down, but she kept on firing. That was Jake's plan, and that kept her distracted as the rest of the Eagles crept silently along. If she noticed, she certainly didn't take any pains to attack anyone else.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I saw the rest of the Eagles creep along in some form or other, but I really was thinking screw it. My team voted out Patrick instead of me, and I'm just not feeling this game anymore. I'm not gonna screw them up or anything, but no way am I putting out that kind of effort to help people who aren't going to help me." Stella confided.  


* * *

The next car was bare, but the fifth car contained Michelle. She was much more active than Stella. She blocked the doorway to the sixth car and shouted that she would not let any of them pass. She proceeded to fire, hitting both Martin and Nicolas. She refused to relent, even when Nicolas, bearing the brunt of paintball after paintball, wrestled her for her gun and threw it outside the train. She proceeded to block the doorway with her own body.

"I don't wish to be violent. Please, Michelle, step out of the way." Kenny responded. Michelle shook her head. Kenny nodded, and opened the window. He made his way along the side of the train, on the opposite side Diana was moving across. She moved to stop him, but there was no way she could reach him. She lunged, hoping to knock him off of the train, but Kenny saw her coming and moved backward, causing her to fall outside.

"Sorry, hon, but this is war." Kenny slipped back inside via the window. Jake had regrouped with the others, and they started to make their way through the next car. They didn't reach anyone for the next three cars.

"They're probably stocking up." Nicolas figured. "How much time have we spent."

"Five minutes and fifteen seconds." Martin responded. "We're making good progress."

"Let's do this!" Henry shouted. He immediately charged into the next car, where Greg was waiting.

"Now that you're here, I have to say it. You shall not pass!" Greg shouted, cheerfully waving his paintball gun around.

"Sure thing, Gandalf. Come on!" Nicolas called and tackled Greg. The gun went flying as the two wrestled, allowing the others to go by. The next car contained Kelly, but she didn't seem interested in the two guys. Instead, she was taking potshots on the outside.

"Crap, she must've found Diana." Henry thought.

"No good, hon. You think we wouldn't think of that!" Kelly shouted, taking shots aiming at Diana's hands, trying to dislodge her. Her shots were straight and true, and Diana found herself stumbling off after a particularly stinging blow.

"We don't think so laterally." Taking advantage of her focus, Henry shouted out, grabbing her and pushing her over the railing, leaving her hanging onto Henry's arm.

"You can drop down yourself, or you can shoot me and I'll drop you." He offered. Kelly shot him without hesitation, causing him to drop her and fall off the train.

"Dirty work, that." Kenny responded. "Let's move on." The twelfth car had no one in it. The next one, however, contained both Edward and Amanda. This was going to be a lot more difficult with both of them there, and clearly, Bobby would be the next car.

"I'm sorry, but you won't be getting through here." Amanda took aim and fired at Kenny, but Martin intercepted the bullet. He moved towards her, while Henry moved towards Edward.

"I can see your strategy. Save Kenny, is that it?" Edward called.

"It's not going to stop you from me!" Henry tackled him. For all of Edward's brains, he wouldn't be able to think of a way out of the much bigger opponent's grapple.

"Amanda, let's not be difficult." Martin responded. While the boys wrestled, Martin pleasantly spoke to his opponent, hoping to merely stall her with words.

"I will not let you." She tried to aim at Kenny, but Martin grabbed hold of the barrel and pointed it towards the ceiling.

"Go, Kenny. The promised land awaits!" Kenny dashed for the next car. Inside was Bobby.

"Hello, Kenny." He responded. He had used some of the random junk strewn around the car to create to create a waist-high barricade around the door to the whistle car. There wasn't enough space to climb over it, not without getting pummeled with paint balls.

"Bobby." Kenny returned. "It seems you wanted to be last."

"You and me, huh? The two team leaders?"

"Team leader?" Kenny responded. "I'm just Shannon's big brother. You want someone else."

"Come on, Kenny, I'm not stupid or blind. Maybe the others are, but I know a fool when I see one, and you are not. Your brainless lunk antics don't work on someone who hasn't been seeing through those tricks for years. Drop the act around me."

"So, what do you want? If I'm so smart, you should know that this wasn't my plan." Kenny dropped his swagger and started to speak normally, in the tone he took whenever he gave strategy.

"There's nothing you can do about it. No one can get by my strategy. If you don't think Greg and Kelly are on their way back, you're out of your mind."

"We took care of Kelly. She chose a soldier's death."

"No need for melodrama. Now, you're more then willing to try and get through the hole if you like, but I'll be pelting you non-stop, and I can pull you down if I have to. I'd much rather speak to you until the time runs out. One intellectual to another, it's so hard to speak to anyone else here when it's not about the game." Bobby spoke with a clean and elegant poise. Kenny studied the hole. He could possibly try to dive through it, but it would be difficult to do; he'd more then likely hit his head on the wall. But Kenny smiled. His plan would soon be fulfilled.

"I don't go for the smart-guy things myself. I hate theater, and opera, and all that crap. I still do football squares."

"Shame, really." Bobby relaxed a little, but then he heard the train whistle blow. His face turned immediately into a look of surprise and shock. Kenny started to laugh.

"How the..." He looked towards the engine car. From the other side of the barricade stood Shannon, with a large smile on her face, signaling the end of the competition.

"Seven minutes." Chris, waiting in the engine car, responded. "The Cobras are going to have seven minutes to beat the Eagles.

"How did you..." Bobby wondered, then he saw Kenny, with a smile as large as his sister's.

"Brains, they say it runs in the family." Bobby acknowledged his defeat.

"I don't know anything about that." Kenny responded.

"I suppose not. No matter. Victory is still the Cobras to take." Bobby went to assemble his team.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I'd really like to take the credit for thinking of that plan, but really, it was all Shannon. Brilliant idea to have her grab the underside of the train and have her sneak along the bottom. Uninterrupted, unmarked, and perfect. It does make me worry though. Kenny and Shannon are an unshakable alliance, and both of them are brilliant. Shannon's pretty strong to boot. There's going to be the team to look out for. My alliance with them might not serve me as long as I think. Who knows when they'll start trimming their own ranks to minimize competition." Jake reported.  


* * *

"The plan here is simple." Jake assembled all of the Cobras in the car that Bobby was holding up in, just before the front. "We don't need to do anything special, we just need to run down the clock. All of us can hole up here. One of us will take each of the sides of the car, one of us will be on the roof, and one underneath. The rest will all stay here."

"I agree, but we won't be able to station anyone underneath, I needed both hands to make that work, it won't work with the gun." Shannon affirmed. "We need strong guys in the car."

"That leaves me out then." Neil responded. "I'll take the roof."

"I'll take one side of the car, and Henry takes the other. We need good shots to go there, I expect Michelle to come that way. Let's do it, Eagles." Diana cheered.  


* * *

"And begin!" Chris had now stationed himself by the Cobras, as he only needed to keep time or hear the whistle blow. The Cobras moved rancorously fast, and blazed through the first half of the train in under a minute.

"Hold up, wait here!" Stella stopped the group. "Doesn't this seem odd to you. We haven't seen a single Eagle yet. Maybe they're doing something weird."

"I doubt it." Bobby responded. "They don't need fancy tricks. They just need to constantly shoot us. We should just charge head-long, make a shield around our shortest person, Kelly, and let them ring the whistle. Time is our enemy." Everyone moved ahead except for Stella.

"I don't think this is going to work. Do whatever, I'll just try something else. She climbed to the roof of the train and started to make her way across the train cars. She did not expect to see Neil coming towards her.

"No illusions, no pithy comebacks?" Stella asked.

"Just a magician with a paintball gun. Does it shoot flowers that I turn into paint, or is it merely paint, and the illusion is in the mind?" Neil delivered a cryptic response.

"Oh jeez, next you'll be reciting sappy couplets so nauseatingly sweet we'll all get diabetes. Forget this, I'm not paid near enough." To Neil's surprise, Stella jumped off the roof of the train to the ground. Back in the train, Edward witnessed her fall to the ground without a smidgen of paint on her. He grumbled.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I've honestly had it up to here with Stella. Kelly tells me she wasn't helpful in the camping challenge, and honestly, she was only mediocre in the other challenges. That damn band act of hers should have been great. Now she's bailing on all the challenges. She's gone." Edward confided.  


* * *

The rest of the Cobras opted for a frontal assault. They decided against sending someone to the side, as maneuvering that way would take a lot of time. They chose to have Bobby's strategy of surrounding their shortest player, which was Kelly, and using themselves as human shields to protect her from paintballs. They had to move a lot more carefully then their reckless blitzing through the first couple of cars, as Neil was taking potshots at them from the roof of the car each time they exited a car to reach the next one. They reached the car with the Eagles in it, the last one before the whistle car, with three minutes to spare. Quickly, Greg and Michelle stepped to the front.

"You think clustering yourself is going to save you from us." Nicolas scowled, and took the first shot, cleanly hitting Greg straight in the chest. He only smiled.

"It feels good!" He shouted. "Shoot me again!" He cheered as Nicolas and Martin both joined in the shooting. The cluster of Cobra campers took a few tentative steps into the car, which the Eagles responded by erupting into a volley of shots. Kenny wasn't firing, which made Jake pause. Although the targets were in clear view, why wouldn't he take the shots?

"Inside, now!" Jake shouted through an open window so that Diana, Neil, and Henry could rejoin the group. He fired at the group, sniping Edward several times in the neck, but Kenny didn't join in, despite having a clear shot. The Cobras reached the middle of the car, which is when Kenny made his move. He threw aside his gun and dove on them, causing the Cobras to fall over themselves, and surprisingly, revealing an unmarked Kelly.

"So, that's the plan." Jake said quietly. "Attack now!" He ordered, picking up Kenny's gun and firing wildly, attempting to prioritize shooting Kelly. He nicked her in the leg, but she scrambled behind a few of her other teammates and started to move forward.

"Little soldier, will you run?" Martin called as he attempted to intercept her, but she charged him, knocking him to the ground. She twisted to dodge a shot from Shannon and started to move towards the front cabin.

"No way!" Diana charged and tried to shoot her, but Bobby bore the brunt of her shot. He refused to budge from in front of her.

"Go!" He shouted towards his teammate. Kelly scrambled towards the exit and avoided a hail of fire from Henry, but Neil managed to snipe her from the roof again before she entered the car and blew the whistle.

"All right, Kelly, that's how you do it!" Amanda cheered. "And we did it in time to spare."

"Fifty seconds to spare, actually." Chris came to the front of the track. "But, it looks like the soldier has been a bit marred."

"We all have scars. We still succeeded."

"Not quite. Each paint ball is thirty seconds. That makes you ten over. The Eagles make it a turkey with three in a row. Well done, guys. Your reward tonight, like I said, is dinner and a show. Be back here at the train tracks at seven, dudes. Cobras. While they're having a good night, you'll be voting someone off. Again."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Since Bobby and I were the ones who dished out the strategy, I'm sure that the team is going to be looking at us. And honestly, if it was just that, I'd be more then fine with walking the Dock of Shame. But Stella is just not in this game anymore. I'd have to choose between her and Bobby, whose been annoying me with his egotistical smartass nature since Day 1. But, and I'm going to hate myself for admitting this, he plays the game well, and does step up, which is more than I can say Stella did in this challenge. I just hope he looks at things the same way I do, since Greg and Kelly seem to follow him, but if not, I'm going to have to talk to them myself."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It's time to get rid of Edward." Bobby stated. "The plan he made wasn't bad, but it's either him or me at this point. There's no one else I can really think of to eliminate."  


* * *

Back at the Cobra cabin, Edward decided to speak with Greg. He tried to get a chance to speak with Kelly, but Bobby seemed to be monopolizing her time. There was no way Edward would explain his plan in front of Bobby. Bobby would construe the plan as a weakness, play it up as a sign of Edward's desperation, and get Kelly to vote him off.

"Greg, I wanted to tell you something." Edward sat down next to Greg on the steps of the cabin porch.

"Speak, and I shall listen." Greg responded. Edward was taken aback by such a forthright and unambiguous, if unnecessarily ornate, statement.

"Do you know what happened to Stella after she separated from the group?"

"I thought you were telling me something." Another strange and forthright response made Edward suspicious. What was going through Greg's mind?

"She appeared to go onto the roof of the train car. After that, I saw her jump from the roof and land on the ground. But she wasn't covered in paint or anything."

"Maybe she fell off." Greg answered quickly, but he didn't appear to be covering for Stella.

"I...I thought that too, but there would have been no reason for her to jump at that point. Plus, she landed on her feet. If you fall, you tend to fall sideways."

"You think she just bailed?" Greg asked. Edward was unsure of how to proceed. Of all the Cobras, and probably the Eagles, Greg was the hardest to read, as he seemed to move by whim rather then by logic or emotion.

"I do." Edward responded. "And that's why..." Greg held up his hand to silence him.

"You are going to ask me to boot her with you, are you not?"

"Yes."

"I see. Okay." Greg perked into a cheerful voice. Now he was back to normal, but Edward still wasn't sure how Greg would react.

"What does that mean?"

"For now, I'll follow you. But my mind might change in the next few minutes. There's a pretty little butterfly over on the tree stump. When I try to catch it, I might forget all about it. Or maybe I won't. Or maybe I'll tell Kelly. Or Stella. I don't really know what I'm gonna do. But I know is that you're using me to try and keep yourself in the game. Why can't people just be honesty with Greggy?"

"Greg, I've been honest." Edward protested. "Stella did..." Greg, though, was no longer paying attention. He had gone to catch the butterfly, but as he went to it, he became enamored with a strip of fly paper hanging from the eves of the cabin roof. And it was when Greg stuck his eye to it, Edward wondered if this was going to be his fatal mistake.  


* * *

"You've all cast your votes and made your decisions." Chris announced to the dwindling ranks of Cobras. "When I call your name, come up, and claim your marshmallow. If your name is not called, you are out, and must immediately board the Boat of Losers, and you can't come back. Ever. The first marshmallow goes to Amanda." With a sigh of relief, Amanda went to claim her marshmallow.

"Next up is Greg." Greg cheered and claimed his prize. Edward watched him intently, trying to see what his next reaction was. But soon found that thought to be futile as Greg stared at the campfire's dance.

"Michelle. Bobby." The two called campers followed suit, Bobby giving Edward a wary look.

"Kelly." The soldier went up and grabbed her marshmallow extremely quickly, as if nervous as to the result.

"Campers, this is the final marshmallow remaining. Edward, Stella, one of you will be out. Stella, you were the first one out in the challenge today, and Edward, this was your plan, your baby, and you killed it. Bummer, dude." As Chris teased Edward, he leaned back on his stump, now wholly realizing his own mistake, wondering what words he could tell Amanda before he left. He hoped that she would not become as resigned as Stella did when Patrick left.

"But here's the marshmallow, Edward. You're safe." Chris threw the marshmallow to the distracted Edward, who caught it with his face. Without a word, Stella picked up the marshmallow and dropped it in Edward's hands before grabbing her luggage and walking down the dock.

"It was for the best." She told the others. "Maybe I'll see you all at the finale." Stella walked down the Dock of Shame. She waved to her fellow campers, who shouted various goodbyes before the boat sailed away.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This doesn't exactly work against me, but not as much as it would be with Edward gone. We still need to pull things out. We're too many campers short and I'm the only one who can protect the idiots on our team. Edward does have a fair bit of strategy, and Amanda's no slouch, but they are all not aware of just how strong and smart those Eagles are, or where the real enemy lies. I've got to see if I can get Kenny, Shannon, or hopefully both, of them eliminated before the team merge." Bobby confided.  


* * *

_Votes_

**Stella: **Amanda, Edward, Greg, Michelle

**Edward: **Bobby, Kelly, Stella


	10. Back to Back Against The Wall

_"Last time on Total Drama Island. The campers put their teamwork and strategy to the test when they had to assault, and defend, a freight train from the other team. Shannon's quick thinking gave her team a masterful edge. Well played, Shannon, well played. The Cobras lost by a margin of seconds, and they were sent to the bonfire for the third time in a row. The Cobras blamed their strategy defeat on Edward, but ultimately, Stella, who bailed out of the competition, was the one who walked the Dock of Shame. Things might not all be bad news for the Cobras, as Bobby seems to have isolated the real power player behind the Eagles: Kenny, and his masterful strategic mind. Now that the gauntlet has been thrown, can Bobby do something about it, or has his greatest fear been realized. Find out tonight on Total...Drama....Island."_

Still seated at the campfire after Stella's elimination, Bobby had called together a planning meeting for the Cobras.

"Okay, everyone, listen up. I'm not going to mince words. Things are bad right now. Really bad. We're two campers behind, and the Eagles are just mopping the floor with us. We need to really get our game on. No more moping like Stella." He commanded.

"Bobby, every time you take command, we end up losing." Michelle countered. "Why don't you give it a rest. We all know how to play the game."

"We used to win challenge after challenge."

"We would win them because we didn't do such things. We won one because Greg likes shiny things." Edward started.

"Guilty!" Greg interrupted.

"We won another because we used a creative approach, and we won our third because of raunchy sex. Basically, we just let our strengths go as they will." Edward finished his thought. "Why don't we just do that, how about it?"

"It seems to work." Amanda added. Shot down by so many dissenting opinions, Bobby opted to keep his mouth shut.  


* * *

The next day, Chris greeted the campers as they were eating breakfast.

"Morning, campers. Ready to kick this game into high-gear?"He asked.

"This game is always in high-gear in my gastro-intestinal tract. We're probably going to need surgery after this." Edward replied, barely eating the slop in front of him.

"Good to hear you're so prepared. Because the game is going to be changing very soon."

"Changing how?" Neil asked.

"Well, for starters, we'll be moving to a new campsite down the river." Chris reported. "You've gotten away with the mundane little challenges and survival skills so far, but we're going to make you earn that hundred grand."

"Is this just another excuse to torture us?" Bobby asked. Chris grinned and nodded.

"Just checking." Bobby seemed almost resigned. "Are we starting this now?"

"No, not yet. You're going to have the wimp challenges, and this one starts right after breakfast. And be prepared to bring it."  


* * *

Outside of the mess hall, the campers assembled in front of Chris.

"Wonder what today's sadistic challenge is going to be?" Diana wondered aloud.

"Today's challenge is going to a simple classic that I've horribly warped to cause the greatest amount of pain to all of you."

"You're being surprisingly honest about this." Martin replied.

"We're going to call this one the Back-to-Back Head-to-Head." Chris delivered the challenge. Most of the campers stared at him quizzically.

"You'll be in teams of two competing together. However, you're going to be tied together back to back while attempting the stunt, and if you don't remain that way, you're out. They're will be five stunts to complete, and the first to three wins. And, since I can't possibly pass up such an easy opportunity for a ratings boost, I'll be choosing the teams.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Bring it on, Chris. There's no way we Eagles are going to fall apart because of simple challenge partners." Henry confessed.  


* * *

"So, for the first stunt, we're going to start with a classic. A simple foot-race, while being stuck together back-to-back. On the Cobra team, we're going to have Amanda and Greg, while the Eagles will have Kenny and Neil."

"Piece of cake." Kenny replied. "Let's do it, sparky."

"Wheeee!" Greg cheered and grabbed Amanda in a hug.

"Okay, Greg, I think you're strangling her." Michelle tried to ease him off, while both Edward and Kelly seemed annoyed with his forwardness.

After the teams were taped together, they assembled on the starting line. Kenny decided to bend over at the waist, lifting Neil into the air, while Amanda and Greg decided to run sideways. As soon as Chris fired a gun, the race quickly started, Kenny's sprinting granting him an amazing lead.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I hope for the team's sake that this is a sprint race. Or else Neil is going to have to carry Kenny, and that's going to be very hard." Diana confessed.  


* * *

The course was marked off, so Kenny didn't have any problems knowing where he was supposed to go. Neil was supposed to mention if he saw the others getting closer, but so far he hadn't mentioned anything.

"You okay, Kenny?" Neil asked. "You're breathing really heavy."

"That...that happens when...you run. Wonder how much...longer."

"Well, you'd see it before I would. You can stop for a quick rest, Kenny."

"Nah...It can't...be much further." Kenny's paced slowed, but he continued to press forward.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"That Kenny, he's strong, smart, and tough. But he's extremely overconfident and doesn't recognize his own limits. I don't want to lose this challenge because of it. The other campers aren't around, and it might look bad on me." Neil confessed.  


* * *

Far behind the Eagles, Amanda and Greg had taken the whole course with a much slower pace, although they were both still panting.

"Wow. This is exhausting!" Amanda replied.

"This is fun!" Greg, while still exhausted, seemed to be almost gleeful.

"How are you so cheerful." Amanda asked in ragged breaths. "Who knows how much longer this is, and Kenny's..."

"Why are we talking about Kenny? He's on the other team." Greg interrupted.

"Because he..."

"We can't stop him from winning this race with our thoughts. Man, wouldn't that be so cool! Come on, if we run fast enough, we can affect Kenny with our thoughts." Greg, his mind in several different places, started to move faster. However, because Amanda wasn't moving faster with him, they just ended up collapsing into a ball.

"Compromising position." Greg cheered. "At least we're back to back. Wouldn't want Eddie to start throwing punches."

"He wouldn't do that. We're just friends. It's not like that." Amanda defended, glad that Greg could not see her blush.

"Whatever you say." Greg replied. "Come on, faster pace, on three." They stood up, and returned to the race.  


* * *

Kenny was really starting to tire now.

"Come on, dude, you gotta stop. I can't carry you." Neil was aggravated. Kenny took about three more steps before finally raising his back and letting Neil get his feet on the ground.

"Sw...switch." He asked.

"For a bit." Neil replied. "But I'm not as strong as you and you're heavier. But I'll give it a shot." Neil tried to heft Kenny on his back, but the much larger man was much heavier then anticipated.

"Jeez, you weigh a ton." Neil complained.

"I'm not...getting any lighter." Kenny sarcastically jabbed. "And this was your idea." Neil started to take a few steps, but couldn't go much faster then a walk. The two men walked in silence for a time.

"This isn't working." Kenny replied. "I think I can see the other team."

"Are you sure?" Neil asked.

"Yes, and they're gaining a lot of speed. Do you see the goal line?"

"No. I'll try to move faster." Neil tried to move into a run, but Amanda and Greg were moving faster. The two of them easily surpassed the other team.

"Now we're behind." Kenny complained. Neil kept trying to meet pace, but he kept stumbling over Kenny's weight.

"This isn't working." Kenny noted. "Neil, we have to switch again."

"Kenny, you were like three steps from passing out just ten minutes ago." Neil protested.

"I'll be fine." Kenny insisted. The two switched places, and Kenny broke into a dead sprint. He started to catch up to Amanda and Greg, who started moving even faster.

"Keep a going, Kenny." Neil cheered. Kenny kept pushing and pushing, sweat pushing from all the pores on his body. He kept running and running, until his entire body gave out from the strain, and he fell flat on his face. Although Neil tried to get up and move, Amanda and Greg easily passed them and won the match.

"And the Cobras win round one." Chris announced. Neil, finally able to get up from the ground, crossed the line, where the other Eagles quickly untied the two. While Neil fell into an exhausted heap, the rest of the Eagles crowded around Kenny.

"Big brother!" Shannon was frantic.

"I know a little about such things." Martin pushed the others aside and took a cursory glance at Kenny.

"It's okay, he's just exhausted." Martin replied. "Chef'll take him to the infirmary." Martin stepped aside and Chef slung Kenny over his back. Shannon started to move towards him, but Diana stopped her.

"You know he'd just say 'I'm fine, just go work on the challenge.' Come on." Diana imitated Kenny's slow pitched voice. She didn't laugh, but she nodded and followed the rest of the campers towards the next challenge.  


* * *

The next challenge was taking place at the Dock of Shame. Jake and Martin had assembled for the Eagles, while Edward and Michelle were assembled for the Cobras. Chris was standing at the edge of the dock next to two wave jumpers.

"Are we racing those?" Michelle asked excitedly.

"Do you even know how to ride that?" Edward asked.

"No. But it looks so cool." She replied.

"This second challenge is going to be the Back-to-back Wave Racer challenge." Chris announced. "You campers are going to be stuck back-to-back and water skiing on these wave jumpers. Chef and I will be driving these wave jumpers, and we'll be doing our best to make sure you wipe out in a ratings-busting way. The first time to fall loses the round. Okay, campers, suit up!"

"This can't be legal." Martin wondered as he and Jake were strapped together behind the jet ski.

"Sure it is. According to the contract, Chris can do anything short of kill us." Jake replied. "I've got better eyes, so why don't I race facing the jet ski so I can tell us what's ahead."

"That's fine with me. This isn't really my forte." Martin agreed.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It does make me a little nervous that these challenges will soon be taking a harsher turn. While I welcome an ability to test my limits, my limits won't go as far as many of the other Eagles. I'm worried I'll come up short." Martin confessed.  


* * *

Michelle excitedly volunteered to race facing the jet ski, which Edward agreed to do without protest.

"I doubt I'd be any better on here then you." Edward acknowledged. "It might as well be you."

When the challenge started, Jake was laughing rancorously as Chef raced out around the lake.

"Bring it on!" Jake anxiously cheered. Chef scowled as his delight, and started racing even faster. He held onto the rope loosely, even tilting his body a little, to Martin's protests. By contrast, Michelle held onto the rope tightly, and was almost static as she raced along. The two wave racers moved out towards the lake towards a marshy area filled with standing grass and sandbars.

"Get ready to jump, preach!" Jake cheered.

"You can't be serious!" Martin shouted back.

"Jump or fall!" Jake cheered as he coaxed Martin into crouching down. When Jake gave the signal, both men pushed into the sky and over the sandbar. The Cobras were behind the Eagles, and Michelle copied Jake's technique to successfully clear the obstacle.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It appears as though they will mimic our technique." Martin confessed. "That's worrysome. If so, we'll lose, because Jake can't be flawless forever."  


* * *

The wave runners started to leave the marsh area. The water seemed to be getting much choppier up ahead, with small waves everywhere. When Michelle informed Edward, he started to get bothered by that. However, Michelle was undaunted as she ascended wave after wave, landing gracefully back on the water.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Check it out!" Michelle confessed. "I'm like a cat, see. I can always land correctly no matter what."  


* * *

Jake expertly handled the choppy water, but soon, he felt Martin tugging on him restlessly.

"Sharks!" Martin shouted. With his back to the jet ski, he had been seeing little more then the disturbed water from the trail they followed. But soon, pointed dorsal fins were starting to close in. Edward noticed them too, and he informed Michelle about it. As she turned her head to see them, she caught herself unaware for a jump, and landed with a jolt, causing her to loose her grip on the rope and tumble into the waves.

"Yeah, that's game!" Jake cheered. Once on the dock, he grabbed Martin in a large bear hug.

"We did it, preach!" He cheered.

"Uhhh...thank you, Jake." Martin politely coaxed Jake while easing out of his grip. Chris's wave runner soon came up with the drenched Cobras.

"Well, I'm glad those sharks didn't catch up to us." Edward looked out over the waves to see the sharks, now close to the docks from following the wave jumper. Although Edward thought it may have just been a trick the sun played on his eyes, but he could swear the sharks almost seemed disappointed.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Alright. That'll boost morale. Now we can take the next two challenges and win another challenge. Looking for a four boat, come on!" Jake confessed.  


* * *

Chris had gathered the campers on the top of the cliffside for the third challenge.

"For your next challenge, you'll be tied back-to-back and suspended fifty feet from a rope. Your challenge is to get yourself unhooked from the bottom of the rope, then climb back up. And, once you get unhooked, we're going to have a little hidden surprises. Okay, so, for the Cobras let's have Kelly and Amanda go for it, and for the Eagles, we'll have Shannon and uh, Nicolas. Campers, get ready." Chris announced the rules of the challenge.

"Are you good with ropes?" Amanda asked Kelly as they got harnessed up.

"As much as the next person." Kelly replied. "We should be fine on our end, I'm just worried about their end. Nicolas strikes me as the Boy Scout type."

When Chris started the challenge, Kelly started feverishly on trying to get themselves unstuck from the bottom, while Nicolas took a leisurely pace. Amanda and Shannon both gripped their rope for security as the other two did their work. The work was difficult, as both Nicolas and Kelly were dangling, and could not see where they were attached too, but both of them finished at around the same time.

"Hang on, this is going to be rough!" Nicolas stated. He quickly informed Shannon of his strategy.

"I'll haul you up." Nicolas informed. "This'll be fine, don't worry." Nicolas gripped the rope. With Shannon facing the other way, it wasn't going to be possible for her to properly grip the rope and climb. Kelly was attempting much the same tactic with Amanda, who obligingly let go of the rope for the army girl to climb.  


* * *

On the top of the cliff, Chris watched their progress. Once he watched them get unhooked, he started to grin.

"I promised surprises. Chef, you're up!" He called, and grinned while rubbing his hands together. The other campers, watching Chris's reaction, started to worry.  


* * *

Back at the cliffside, Nicolas was starting to get a slight lead over Kelly.

"Hey, do you hear something?" Shannon asked him.

"No, I'm trying to concentrate on..." Nicolas started, but soon he heard the whirring sound of helicopter blades. Nicolas tried to ignore it and concentrate on climbing, but Shannon started to get nervous when she saw a large helicopter come flying up in front of her flown by Chef.

"What!" Shannon shouted.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"A Black Hawk helicopter. You've got to be kidding me!" Kelly confessed. "Where do they get the budget for stuff like that?"  


* * *

"They aren't going to fire on us, are they." Amanda's voice was tense, and she starting shaking, causing Kelly to have a more difficult time on the rope. Shannon was also trying to keep still to help Nicolas, but even he had to stop and wait for her to remain still. Once he started up again, however, Chef made his move. The helicopter opened fire with two snow cannons.

"Oh crap!" Nicolas braced himself for the impact, and waited until it finished firing before he started to make his move. Kelly, though, gritted her teeth and climbed right through the snow.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Kelly is amazing." Amanda confessed. "Through thick and thin, she's going to push on to make sure we win this. I'm glad to see not everyone is so down about the losing streak."  


* * *

Nicolas took a brief glance at Kelly's strategy, but opted to continue his own methods. The snow cannons fired again and Nicolas waited, letting Kelly's lead increase further. He started to make up for lost time while the cannons were silent, but at the pace they were going, it appeared as though Kelly would win the race.

"Nick, what are we going to do?" Shannon asked.

"Victory will wait." Nicolas replied. "Just watch us win." Nicolas started to climb a little faster, while Kelly's ascent started to get a little shorter.

"We're almost there, Kelly!" Amanda cheered. Kelly's breath was ragged and was taking longer pauses.

"This..." Kelly tried to catch her breath, while the snow cannon started again. Rather then try to climb, she paused. Nicolas saw his chance, and started to make a push for it. Pushing through the snow and dirt, Nicolas started to pass Kelly and quickly made his way for the top of the cliff.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It's like a basketball game, you only win in the last two minutes. Besides, you can only push yourself so much." Nicolas confessed. "And if Kelly had known that, we would have lost. Oh well, another point for the Eagles."  


* * *

"Okay, so the Eagles pull ahead." Chris informed. "The Cobras can still snatch victory if they take the last two events."

"Piece of cake." Henry smiled. "Hard stuff's over, now it's all comin' home. What's the next challenge, Chris?"

"The fourth challenge is going to take place right at the bottom of the cliff." Chris replied. "Diana and Henry will be playing for the Eagles, and Bobby and Edward will be up for the Cobras."

"Ah, hell!" Edward moaned. "What are we doing."  


* * *

As the two new pairs were getting set up, Chris started to explain the challenge. The campers had only been at the lake a few hours ago, but it seemed that, while they were busy elsewhere, the interns had set up a ramshackle construction of wooden beams arranged haphazardly around the lake.

"You'll be tied back-to-back, and walking across narrow platforms to cross the lake. If you fall off, you're out. First one to cross wins. And we'll make sure to have a few surprises waited for you while on the course. Get ready, you guys."

"I'm super psyched, girl." Henry cheered as Diana started on the course. She tried her best to ignore him. The platform she was walking on was barely wider then her feet, and wasn't of the sturdiest construction.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This challenge would be a lot easier if I didn't have Henry as a partner. It's not that he isn't strong or anything, but he's a complete flake. At least Kenny will shut up and do the job." Diana confessed.  


* * *

While Diana tried to walk carefully, Bobby and Edward were stepping on three counts. Bobby had quickly devised what the fastest path across would be. Soon, they were stepping on two counts rather then three, making excellent time across the path.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It doesn't surprise me that Bobby could think of the fastest way to get across this insane course, but what concerns me is Chris's surprises. He's definitely but them there. Maybe we should not follow that. But, if I contradict Bobby, he's going to waste a lot of time arguing with me." Edward confessed.  


* * *

Diana started slowly on the course.

"Want me to take the lead?" Henry offered.

"We don't have that kind of space to move around." Diana replied. "Let's just keep..." Diana's voice was cut off by a large explosion. The platform beside them, along with several others, had exploded in a fiery crash.

"Jesus!" Henry shouted. "What is wrong with Chris!" Diana crouched down and grabbed the plank she was standing on to prevent the shockwave from knocking her off.

"This isn't good." Diana replied. Because of the explosion, many of the planks were on fire, and in even worse condition then before. They were going to have to move quickly before they got caught in the flames, but if they moved too fast, the planks might crumble from under them.

"We're going to have to chance it." Diana hefted Henry onto her back and started to run.  


* * *

Edward and Bobby were nowhere near the explosions, but they completely ruined Bobby's plan. The fastest route was not even remotely accessible now.

"We've got to change everything." Edward replied. "Let's go back and try to avoid any exploded beams.

"No, that's exactly what Diana would do, and she's closer to that path then us." Bobby countered. "We aren't going to win without taking risks. We need to go back, take the beam to the left, and then make that jump. Then, we'll be safe."

"Bobby, that's a jump we can't make." Edward protested.

"Then we might as well jump off. The smoke from the bombs is irritating my throat. But then we'll lose again, and I'll boot you the hell off this island, and they'll agree with me." Bobby threatened. "You wanna risk that? Or maybe your girlfriend will get the boot, Amanda screwed up that last challenge. We're doing this my way!" Edward started to protest again, but could not think of anything to say.

"Let's go, then." Edward sighed. Bobby started to move faster, following his route until he reached the demolished path. Without wasting another second, he leapt towards the path, narrowly managing to grip the ledge. It took some time to get back up onto the platform, but Bobby managed to get ahead.  


* * *

"We need to get up, Henry." Diana, looking over at Bobby's insane maneuver, now became worried.

"Don't worry, hon. We can still pull this out. Watch." Henry started to move faster from behind, practically pushing Diana with his body. He started to make up some distance.

"Slow down." Diana reported. "We're coming up to a turn." Henry, however, refused to heed her, and he continued to push her straight off the path and into the lake.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Well, that was anti-climatic. I just hope the next team can take this victory for us." Bobby confessed.  


* * *

"Cobras tie things up." Chris delivered. "Meet me in the mess hall for the final round."

"Dammit, Henry, you should have listened." Diana cursed.

"It's no big deal." Shannon intervened. "We just need to win this one. I know we can do this."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"She better hope so." Diana confessed. "Or else Shannon's going to be a bit disappointed. I've got nothing against Henry himself, but I know that he is part of the big alliance with Kenny and Nick, and I need to start thinking strategy. If we lose tonight, that'll be a perfect chance to pick him off and weaken that team's stranglehold on this game."  


* * *

In the mess hall, Chris had a large smile on his face.

"We're not doing a force feeding contest, are we?" Kelly asked. She and Greg had assembled for the Cobra team. Chris shook his head.

"Well, whatever it is, we're ready to go." Neil cheered. He and Jake were chosen from the Eagles, and he seemed ready to redeem his past mistake.

"Like before, you're going to be stuck back-to-back." Chris delivered. "However, before, we just tied you guys by the waist. Now it's going to be different. You're going to be completely tied, head to toe, together, and your task is to get untied. First team to succeed wins."

"Any potentially homicidal surprises?" Edward asked bitterly.

"Not for this one." Chris replied. "Just get out. Campers, to your places." Chef did an expert job at tying the teams together. Once Chris started the challenge, Jake tried to give himself as much slack as possible, trying to get his hands free. However, he didn't seem any closer to getting his hands free.

Kelly was trying similar tricks on her end to get her hands free. The knots holding her were very basic, and they would be easy enough to remove if she could free her hands. But as it stood, there was nothing she could do.

"We could chew through the ropes." Greg suggested. "I saw that in a movie once. I bet ropes taste really ropey."

"Enough puns." Kelly ordered. "We can't chew through the ropes. If you haven't noticed, Chef also tied our heads together with the rope on our forehead."

"Oh right. At least he didn't tie us face to face. Then we'd be stuck making out." Greg said distractedly. That sentiment bothered Kelly a bit. It hadn't been so long since the two of them had their river fun.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Has he forgotten about that already?" Kelly confessed. "But enough of this foolishness. I had to remember the lessons Dad taught me. We need to weaken these ropes with something sharp. Of course Chef would hide any knives or cutting instruments, but then I remembered, this is a cabin. There's support pillars at each corner. The corners of those pillars should work."  


* * *

"Greg, on my count, try to stand up." Kelly ordered. She counted, and Greg, almost surprisingly, did as she asked. She then started to wander over to the nearest corner, where, sure enough, there was a square pillar, the corner jutting out like a beacon.

"Push yourself out as far as possible and rub on this corner." Kelly gave another order. "Follow my commands of down and up."

"It sounds so dirty when you say it." Greg teased, but he followed her commands.  


* * *

"Oh crap!" Jake nervously saw what Kelly was doing.

"Should we follow and move faster?" Neil asked.

"That's all I can think of, at any rate." The two men tried to stand up, but they weren't moving together at first, causing them to fall over quickly. By the time the two of them were over in the other corner, Kelly had a commanding lead..

"There's gotta be a way we can do something." Neil insisted. The two tried to move as fast as they can, but the two still were not moving together as Kelly and Greg were, and were getting stuck. It was a slow process, but Kelly's ropes soon snapped, and her team was free.

"Yes, we did it!" Greg cheered and grabbed Kelly in another hug. Unlike Amanda, however, she didn't seem to mind.

"That's game. Cobras, you've finally broken your losing streak. Well done. Eagles, what can I say, you played hard, but in the end, you guys lost. I know it's been a while, but I'll see you at the campfire tonight." Chris delivered the news to the teams.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It's gotta be Neil tonight. Two challenges, bro, that is not going to cut it for me." Kenny confessed. "Besides, there's really no other choices. Diana's one, but she's strong, and fairly loyal to us. Better to keep her then Neil, who I don't know whose side he'll join once the team merge happens."  


* * *

No one seemed particularly happy once the campfire ceremony started.

"You've all cast your votes and made your decision. If you're the one without a marshmallow tonight, you're going to have to get the heck outta here. Okay, first up is Nicolas." Chris held up the marshmallow towards him, who eagerly grabbed it.

"The next one is for Martin." The preacher smiled at Diana before going to claim his prize.

"Shannon." Chris called. Shannon retrieved her marshmallow, looking back at her brother without a word.

"Jake." Chris threw the next marshmallow towards him, apparently not inclined to see him devour it.

"Can't say I'm surprised to see the rest of you sitting there. You all screwed up today." Chris taunted the remaining campers.

"Shut up, Chris." Kenny replied. "Who's next?"

"You. Come and get your marshmallow, Kenny." Shannon seemed relieved when Chris and Kenny argued. Kenny gathered his marshmallow with a smile.

"Diana." Martin seemed as relieved as Shannon was when Diana's name was called, but when the others started to look at him, he clammed up and returned to his postured demeanor.

"This is the last marshmallow tonight. Either Henry or Neil is going to be going home tonight. The final marshmallow..." Henry seemed nervous at first, but then he looked towards Kenny, and saw his blank expression, and seemed to lose his tenseness. Neil, however, had his hands clutched together nervously.

"Is for Neil." Chris finished, throwing the marshmallow at Neil. The entire team was surprised.

"Did you count those right?" Kenny asked.

"I know how to count, dude." Chris dismissed. "And that's what the numbers say. You're out, dude." It took a minute for Henry to collect himself, but he started to walk down the dock.

"Sorry bout that, hon." He told Diana.

"It's okay. Sorry, cowboy." She replied.

"See you all when the finale starts. Or earlier, who knows what kind of twists Chris is going to pull. Later, ya'll." Henry boarded the boat, and the entire team waved until it was out os sight.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This doesn't make sense. Me, Nick, Shan-ban, and Jake is four votes. Even if Diana told Martin to vote differently, it shouldn't be enough. I know that Henry planned to vote out Diana because of the challenge, but...it seems there's a traitor in our midst. And when I find out who, they are going to find out just how sorry they're going to be." Kenny confessed.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Yeah, I admit it, I sided with Neil on this one." Jake confessed. "Kenny's alliance is too strong, and the state of the Cobras is not harmonious. His team will just pick everyone off without effort. And then, when there's no one else, Kenny's going to fire his guns on the person who joined last. Me. I can't let that happen. I'm going to win this competition."  


* * *

_Votes_

**Henry: **Diana, Jake, Martin, Neil

**Neil:** Kenny, Nicolas, Shannon

**Diana: **Henry


	11. Down to the River to Play

_"Last time on Total Drama Island. The campers were chained together to show them the true definition of teamwork. In this case, they learned that teamwork means to not let your partner pass out, or get caught in an explosion. The Eagles played strong, but Greg and Kelly led the Cobras to victory, sending the Eagles back to the bonfire. It seemed that magician Neil was set to take his final curtain, but, in a shocking twist, Jake betrays his alliance, causing lovable cowboy Henry to get the boot. Will Kenny get to the bottom of this savage betrayal? Can the Cobras take advantage of this change of heart? Will I win my bet with Chef on how long the surviving interns will last? Find out tonight, here on Total...Drama...Island." _

The morning was a bitter one for Kenny. He hated taking showers, but today, he took a long one to think, as showering was the one time anyone could ever get privacy at this campsite. He knew that someone had betrayed the team and voted out Henry. Either Jake, Nicolas, or Shannon had done such a thing. It was the only way. Kenny was pretty certain about Nicolas being innocent, he and Henry were like an odd couple, but the fact that he had to suspect his little sister was not sitting well with him.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Part of me hopes that Jake is the traitor. I can just deal with him and move on. But another part of me is sad for that to. I get along with Jake, I like him. Nick and Jake get along too, they'd go adventuring in some long lost tomb looking for treasure together or something crazy like that. But now, I have to suspect him, or suspect my sister. It would be impossible for me to adequately deal with Shannon if she was the traitor. Even worse then that, she's smart enough to figure that out." Kenny confided

* * *

"Good morning, Kenny." Jake called to Kenny as he stepped out of the shower.

"Oh, hi, Jake. How are you." Kenny moved over to the sink to brush his teeth.

"Just fine." Jake ducked into a shower stall and started it up. "Any idea what the challenge is going to be?"

"No, but I'm looking forward to the merge and the game shift. I can get behind the whole survival challenge aspect. Sounds like fun." Kenny departed from the shower. He couldn't afford to get too chummy with Jake. It could be a ruse.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I don't feel bad about playing the game." Jake defended. "But that doesn't mean we can't get along with each other. We can't just dwell on the past, we need to move on and get on with our lives."

* * *

"Campers, congratulations. The team merger, and the transition, will soon be underway." Chris announced. The two teams started congratulating their members, patting each other on the back and slapping high-fives.

"The new site is going to be down the river from here, not too far away. Your challenge today is going to be a two-day kayak trip down river, where you will join us at the new grounds. Think of this as your final exam before you start the new game." Most of the campers seemed enthusiastic with the challenge, although Diana silently told Jake she was thrilled that Chris would not be around to torture them. He silently agreed.

"Good to see you're so excited. You'll be racing in individual kayaks, but you'll be traveling as a team. Pack up your stuff, and meet by the Dock of Shame in two hours where I'll give you more details."

* * *

At the Eagles cabin, Shannon was helping her brother pack.

"You never fold your clothes right, your suitcases always bulge and have openings." She scolded.

"Leave some time for yourself, Shan-ban." Kenny responded. "We only have so much time to get our stuff ready."

"I've got plenty of time, big brother. I could probably pack everyone's suitcase in two hours." She moved quickly, and soon, Kenny's suitcase was all ready. He grabbed it and sat outside.

"Get kicked out too, or just need some time to think." Kelly, over at the Cobra's cabin, smiled at him. Kenny pointed towards his suitcase.

"Too many people inside. If you don't need to be there, might as well go." He said.

"Well, you guys might have more people, but we have Amanda and Michelle. Those two are so fussy about fashion and getting their luggage packed. I just threw my stuff in a gym bag." Kelly shrugged.

"Soldiers make do, don't they?" Kenny asked. Kelly smiled at his response.

"Is this the meeting place for exiles?" Martin's voice came from the doorway of the Eagles' cabin.

"Did Shannon kick you out?" Kenny asked. Martin nodded.

"She's certainly meticulous. Guess it runs in the family."

"No, she's just like Mom." Kenny responded. "I'm surprised she doesn't kick everyone out and just pack the suitcases herself."

"She's quite fast. Her worth is beyond rubies. That's said about a wife, but your little sister is certainly precious, is she not?" Kenny nodded to Martin.

"Indeed, but let's not discuss family. The fact that Shannon and I are related is enough." Kenny averted Martin's eyes.

"I understand. I apologize if I slighted you." Martin was apologetic.

"It's nothing, it's okay. I'm not mad. You can't get mad at a preacher."

"I'm not a priest, Kenny, and I doubt I shall become one. To speak of religion doesn't mean religion is my life."

"Has Diana been talking to you?" Kenny asked.

"Why?"

"Because that sounds like something she'd say, if she used ornate language. All right, I'm gonna help Shannon by hauling suitcases. I may not be Mr. Top-packer, but a big lunk like me can haul the suitcases. Make sure you've got stuff ready to bring with you. I doubt we can lug these suitcases in the kayaks, and it's supposed to be a long trip." Kenny stood up and went to aid his sister.

* * *

"Campers, here is a map of where we are, and where you'll be going. You'll be going downriver. This isn't a simple day trip, dudes. This trip is going to take two days. You should be arriving before sunset tomorrow. So that means you'll have to camp out tonight. We've set up a checkpoint for you guys to reach by the end of the day tonight with camping supplies. Nothing is assembled, so plan on taking some time to do that. If you don't reach it, you're on your own in the night, dudes, and I do not recommend going down the river at night. This is your final test, like I said. Your ultimate camping challenge before we start the new challenges. The first full team to reach the new site wins. There won't be a campfire ceremony when we get there, but that team will have a very distinct advantage which will be revealed when they get there. Okay then, I'll see you later. Good luck."

"Hmmm...All you Eagle boys in your trunks. A good sight to take in before we go." Michelle teased.

"I'm go glad you enjoy yourself." Martin responded. "Please, be careful on your journey. We shall see you at the finish line." The campers started to get into their kayaks. Chris fired a gun to start the race, and the campers starting going downstream.

* * *

The Cobras took an early lead while the Eagles opted to go slower, helping Diana and Neil, who had never gone kayaking before, to get familiar with it's use.

"Should we go faster, big brother?" Shannon asked

"We'll just tire ourselves." Kenny responded. "We've got two days anyway, we should make sure we all are comfortable with riding down the river in these things, and then pull ahead."

"Chris's map said there were rapids ahead." Jake mentioned. "Everyone, be very careful." He paddled ahead of the rest of the team, being the most familiar with kayaking. The rest of the Eagles tried to follow his lead as best they could.

* * *

The Cobras, making excellent time, started to run into their first bit of trouble, the first bit of rapids.

"Whoa!" Kelly was really enjoying herself, going up the waves. Greg too, was screaming wildly in excitement. The rest of the Cobras weren't too keen about the waves, and were having a lot of difficulty.

"Try to stay upright." Edward called.

"Have you even done this before?" Bobby asked. Edward shook his head.

"You all should scream wildly and paddle slowly. That's what I'm doing and I'm having a wet time!" Greg inserted his comment randomly between screams of joy.

"Why not? It seems to work." Amanda said. She immediately steered right into the waves, shouting loudly as Greg did. She started to make quite a bit of progress herself.

"No need for that." Edward responded. "I'll just follow in the rear in case a kayak tips." They passed through the rest of the rapids in silence.

"Hey, Edward, take a look back." Bobby called. "See any Eagles?"

"I think so. Hard to make out, but it might be them. They don't look like they're moving faster then us."

"They will be." Bobby responded. "They've got Adventure Boy and Jake, they'll make better progress on the rapids then we will. Let's pick up some speed, folks." Bobby started paddling ahead, Greg matched him. Michelle slowed down to ride alongside Edward, who wasn't doing too well on the rapids.

"You're paddling too shallow." She offered. "Go deeper, move more water."

"You sound like Amanda." He responded.

"We learn from each other. She's smart, but afraid of being noticed, and I'm not smart, and fearless."

"I gathered that from the talent show. The fearless part, anyway."

"So she makes me smarter and I make her more confident. Fair trade, don't you think."

"Hmph." Edward huffed. "Let's just get moving."

"You don't talk much, do you? You mad or something?"

"I'm not mad. Doctors don't get mad."

"You're not a doctor yet." Michelle reminded. "Hey, didn't even need Amanda for that one. C'mon, lighten up. You're not still mad about the wave runner challenge. We lost, get over it."

"I'm not mad, you've missed the point." Edward huffed and started paddling faster to get away from her.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I really can't focus on Michelle and her flirtations right now. I'm in a tight spot." Edward confessed. "Between Bobby and Shannon, I'm going to have a hell of a time getting my feet on the ground when the teams merge. I need a plan. Amanda's counting on me."

* * *

The Eagles tackled the rapids alarmingly well. With Nicolas helping Diana, and Jake helping Neil, they started to make out the Cobras ahead of them.

"Let's not overtake them, just follow. We've still got quite a bit of light left, at least five hours worth. We're probably nowhere near the checkpoint." Nicolas followed Kenny's original plan.

"Anyone got a map?" Neil asked.

"Shannon's in charge of that." Kenny responded.

"If we continue as we are, we'll have maybe an hour and a half at the checkpoint. That's if we don't make any stops or anything." She reported.

"That's sad, because I'm famished." Jake answered. "I didn't eat much at breakfast."

"No one eats much at breakfast." Kenny responded. "We all just make do. Here, I have an extra granola bar I stole. Eat it and make better time."

"I hope you've got more of those, Kenny." Neil asked.

"No, we won't stop." Diana sided. "Whatever this advantage is, even if it's crappy, we'll want it. There will be food at the campsite."

"What makes you so certain of that?"

"Because I know everything, now shut up and row." Diana brushed him off. Neil frowned as Diana rowed ahead.

"What's with her?" He asked to no one in particular. No one answered for a moment.

"Maybe she's just nervous." Nicolas responded. "She's not comfortable doing this stuff. People get all cranky when they have to do stuff they don't know." Neil didn't seem convinced, but he let it go and the Eagles rowed in silence. Despite not wanting to move fast, they were slowly catching up to the Cobras, although once they noticed this, they started to row ahead faster. This behavior continued for the whole of two hours. Eventually, though, the Cobras just went much faster, losing the Eagles completely.

"Shannon, are we still on schedule with the map?" Kenny asked.

"It looks like it. Our pace hasn't changed."

"Good." Kenny gave no further answer. He didn't change his speed or pacing, nor made any other motions to the teammates.

"Kenny, don't you think we're going to lose if we stay like this?" Neil asked.

"No." Jake responded before Kenny did. "This is a two-day event. It doesn't matter how we do the first day. We just need to reach the checkpoint. We'll work harder during the second day." Kenny nodded at Jake's answer.

"Just enjoy the ride and make sure you don't tip. Look at nature, think over strategy, do whatever you want. Just don't race ahead." Kenny ordered.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Kenny can be really bossy." Neil confided. "Sure, he's really good at helping us win challenges and stuff, but I want to be able to be the team leader sometime. We did really good as Eagles together, but it always felt like we were just following him. Once the teams dissolve, what would the future hold for someone who is unused to planning?"  


* * *

The Cobras reached their marked checkpoint exhausted.

"Whew, that was some workout." Kelly cheered. "I'm still feeling great, though. Wish the campground was further away."

"Kelly, we've got maybe two hours to get our tent ready. I'd really rather get ourselves set up for night before it hits." Edward complained. "Let's just get things ready and get some shut eye so we can set out at dawn."

"Dawn? That early? It'll be really cold." Amanda responded.

"Maybe not dawn exactly, but we set out as soon as we can see the water well enough." Bobby added on. "We need to beat the Eagles. Whatever that prize is, we're getting it."

"Wonder what it could be." Michelle thought out loud.

"Could be nothing. Could be a cushy trailer, could be hints on the challenges before they occur, could be something totally useless." Greg rambled off responses that seemed completely valid considering Chris's sadistic taste in gifts.

"Don't lose sleep over it." Edward started setting up the tent. "It won't matter what it is when we win it."

"Hey, is that the Eagles?" Amanda called. Sure enough, the Eagles were landing at their checkpoint across the river. Shannon waved to them as she got out of her kayak.

"It's not much longer until the sun goes down." Bobby responded. "Think they'll get everything done in time?"

"We're still not done." Michelle handed him some firewood. "Get to it!" Grumbling, Bobby started to nourish their small flame, trying to get it burning strong.

"Think we can sneak over to their camp and cause them a little trouble?" Bobby asked Edward, who was just finishing with the tent.

"Absolutely not. The entire team is exhausted, and we're not going to wake up in the middle of the night just to cause a little mischief."

"You don't have to come. I'm just going to push their kayaks downstream."

"Absolutely not." Edward reiterated. "Tonight is a new moon, so you're not going to have a whole lot of light. Secondly, they probably think that someone will do that and someone will stay on guard to check for that. Thirdly, trapping them there just isn't right. Fourth, if you do it, I will sell you out to the Eagles at the first opportunity. As smart as you are, you know you can't beat both me and Shannon." After delivering his ultimatum, Edward went into the tent and fell asleep, exhausted after the day's work.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Why am I the only one who is willing to do what is necessary to win the challenges. It's not like they would be hurt or anything. We'd just win. That's all. If Kenny is left in the driver's seat, we'd be picked off one at a time. However, as loathe as I am to admit it, if Edward is going to work against me with the Eagles, even if Kenny isn't there, I'm going to end up on the short end of the stick. He's proven to me that he can convince Greg, and that's terrifying. And only one camper leaves at a time. Kenny and Edward together would be a frightening prospect." Bobby confided.  


* * *

On the Eagles's side of the river, the group had finished setting up the camp as night started to fall. Diana was correct in the fact that there was food in the camp, but there certainly wasn't a whole lot.

"Ramen noodles?" She held up a package of the goods. "That's as bad as Chef's food."

"All we need is hot water, though. We can boil water fairly easily. I'll be happy for it." Martin responded. "We must eat, for who knows when we shall eat again." Shannon filled a pot with water from the river while Nicolas worked on a fire.

"So, what to do while this gets ready?" Martin asked. The rest of the Eagles shrugged, standing back to give Nicolas some room.

"Why don't you tell me something, preach." Kenny said. "When we were talking about family, you seemed...almost relieved when I wanted to change the subject." Martin crossed his arms and grabbed the crucifix chain around his neck.

"I'm...sorry?" He tried to feign ignorance, but he wasn't fooling anyone.

"Lying a sin." Diana brought up, suddenly intrigued.

"Well..." Martin trailed off, clearly uncomfortable with the direction of the conversation. "Why the sudden interest?"

"It's just been nagging me." Kenny was quite brief, not wanting to give Martin an inch. "And don't give me anything about curiosity killing the cat. If you don't want to answer, say so. Don't deflect it."

"It's not a secret or anything. I just don't like to discuss it. I don't have one." Martin shrugged and started to stir the pot now sitting over the fire. "I'm an orphan, I was raised by the church."

"That shows." Neil responded first fairly nonchalantly, which caused Martin to smile.

"You don't know anything?" Diana asked.

"Nope. I was left on the doorstep of a small-town church. The only thing my parents gave me was life and the crucifix I'm wearing. There is nothing further to talk about, really." Martin was surprisingly nonchalant about his parents.

"Well, it's not like we all have happy perfect lives like they do in the orange juice commercials. Take our good brother and sister team." Diana turned.

"Huh?" Shannon was confused, but Kenny's brow furrowed in concern.

"Kenny, when I spoke about your sister, you were quite concerned to not speak of family. It seems Diana has also noticed it." Martin finished on Diana's point.

"You're right. No family is touchy-feely perfect. That's all that needs to be said." Kenny dodged.

"You can tell us more then that, you know." Jake pushed on. "Martin told us something important."

"And Martin chose to do so when I said he didn't have to. I'm taking advantage of that." Kenny responded. The ramen had finished cooking, and the group started to eat. Chris had opted not to provide bowls for anyone, so "eating" consisted of dipping a plastic fork into a pot of extremely hot water and trying to get noodles without getting burned. They managed to make do, Kenny remaining silent for the entire meal, not wanting to divulge anything about his family.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It's not that my family life is bad or anything, it's just no one's business to know." Kenny confided. "And it's really not even about me. I'm just a nobody at home."  


* * *

After dinner, Shannon took care of emptying the boiling water.

"So, what now?" Diana asked. "Ghost stories?"

"Nah, I'm tired, I'm gonna hit the hay." Kenny responded. Jake agreed, and both men turned in. "Don't stay up too late. When you wake up, get everything ready for leaving. The noise'll probably wake everyone else up, and we can get started. I want to be out of here before the Cobras even know we're gone." The group was silent while the two boys went inside the tent.

"So, Shannon, what's Kenny so scared about." Neil asked.

"Huh? I don't think he's scared of anything. Things are just weird at home." Shannon answered innocently.

"Weird how?" Diana asked. She smiled, She would be able to prod and get things out of Shannon.

"Well." Shannon paused, as if unsure of how exactly to word what she wanted to say. "It's just that our parents want Kenny to be a super athlete. Team every semester, scholarships, first string, all the way. That's all they've ever encouraged."

"Pushy parents. Happens." Neil responded. "I've got a cuckoo aunt trying to raise my cousin to be a singer, but she's tone-deaf."

"It's not just that. I mean, Kenny's smart, Kenny's real smart. He could be smarter than anyone at school, but at home, the only thing they care about grade-wise is what he gets in P.E and that he's not flunking, cause if you flunk, you can't play. So, Kenny stopped trying at school, and our parents, they stopped caring. He's still upset about it."

"Heh, I know what you mean." Nicolas responded, trying to cheer up the mood. "My dad tried to get me to love golf. He paid for lessons for me to take, signed up tee times, all without asking me. I sloughed my way through it, but I refused to play. He thought it was an insult to everything we stood for. We still rarely talk. All right, I'm following your brother's example. Night." One by one, the Eagles started turning in.  


* * *

The night was a peaceful one, and the morning was damp with dew, but calm. Jake was the first one to wake up. He didn't find it surprising, as he was sleeping in the tent, and he never slept well indoors. It was still early, but light enough to see. He first looked across the banks where the Cobras were camped. There was no one moving, no sounds or anything. Excited at the thought of the challenge, Jake woke up Kenny, who then started working on cleaning the campsite. The other Eagles started to stir, and, with everyone's help, it was easy to get moving and down the river. When Michelle awoke with the Cobras and saw that the site was deconstructed, she sighed. She made no move to rush, and merely accomplished the tasks of getting ready.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Heh, when Bobby wakes up, he's going to be all a hollering and screaming. I think that now, I should just worry about getting ready. At least he won't yell at me." Michelle confided.  


* * *

Michelle's prediction came true. The second Bobby was awake and saw that the Eagles were gone, he was jumping down everyone's throats. Most of the other campers ignored him and got their kayaks ready for departure. They were moving even swifter now than they were the previous day; there was no longer any time to waste.

"I wonder why they awoke so early." Amanda asked Edward.

"I'm guessing it's because we exhausted ourselves yesterday." He responded. "We slept too long because we were tired."

"Hey, you two!" Bobby called from the head of the pack. "If you can talk, you can row faster. It's like weightlifting." He called.

"And yet, he can talk." Edward asided, Amanda chuckled. The Cobras kept moving, but the Eagles must have been racing ahead as well, for they couldn't see them.

"There's a lot of rapids ahead." Kelly, in charge of the map, reported.

"Crap. The Eagles are better there then us. Alright people, get ready for some rough water." Bobby started aggressively paddling into the rapids, his kayak nearly capsizing, to save time.

"Be careful." Greg called. "You might tip."

"When Greg is telling you to be careful, you should listen." Michelle called. She paddled in closer to Bobby, trying vainly to get him to slow down. The distraction from her own rowing, however, caused her kayak to tip to it's side.

"Michelle!" Amanda shouted to get attention. Kelly managed to her help get her kayak upright, and, aside from drinking a bit of the river water, she was more or less unhurt.

"Bobby! Slow down, now!" Kelly ordered. Bobby hadn't even been paying attention to what happened, but once the rapids were out of the way, he agreed to slow down.

"What would have happened if her kayak completely capsized in those rapids? You can't be so focused on winning the challenges. We're a team."

"Not for much longer." Bobby corrected. "And we need to make time. Do you want..."

"...the Eagles to get God know whatever that prize is? It doesn't matter if we get hurt. It's not like we can treat it here. Now, we can make good time without being in danger. Go slower on the rapids." She instructed everyone else. The rest of the group accepted this change in leadership and started to move slower.  


* * *

There was no chance of them catching the Eagles now. And sure enough, a few hours later in the mid-afternoon, when they reached the new campground, the Eagles had already arrived. Most of them were completely soaked, as if they had swam the journey instead of using the kayak. However, none could deny their large smiles.

"Welcome, Cobras. Glad to see you're all still in one piece." Chris greeted them. "And welcome to the site for the remainder of the season. Here, you'll have to perform true survival challenges designed to push you all to your extreme limits."

"Well, that sounds enjoyable. Like throat cancer." Bobby responded. "What's our first challenge?"

"There won't be a challenge today, we'll be starting bright and early tomorrow. But first, for the Eagles, as promised, I'm going to reveal to you your prize. And trust me, you'll be glad you got it." Chris turned to the anticipative Eagles.

"Behind me stand the Cobras, your former competitors. There are six of them standing before me. And soon, there will be five. Your advantage is that you, the Eagles, will choose one Cobra teammate who will be eliminated right here and now."

"Wait a minute." Kelly interrupted. "I thought you said there would be no elimination."

"I said there would be no campfire ceremony. And I don't see a campfire, or marshmallows." Chris corrected, causing Kelly to grimace.

"So, Eagles, each of you will cast a vote. After that, one of you Cobras, will be gone."  


* * *

The Eagles all left to cast their votes, and the Cobras sat in dumbfounded silence.

"I expect they'll vote me off." Edward stated once the Eagles had left. "They know I'm a threat to them."

"They might vote me off." Michelle responded. "They all know how I work my assets."

"I can get voted off because it 's random!" Greg shouted. One by one, the Eagles returned, each handing a folded slip of paper to Chris. He read them silently.

"Okay then. One of you will be leaving here today. And Kelly, it's not you." Chris announced the first safe camper. Kelly sighed with relief.

"There's no marshmallows or anything, so just take your place with the Eagles. And Amanda, you're safe as well." The two women moved over to the other side.

"Michelle." Chris called the third camper, leaving the three men on the other side.

"Greg." Greg was looking around at some old movie props, and was not paying attention until Bobby stepped on his foot.

"And the last camper who will be joining us is..." Chris pointed towards Edward and Bobby, both of whom were not surprised at being called last, but now hoped that the Eagles thought the other was leaving.

"Edward, come and join us. Bobby, you're gone." Edward cheered as he went over to join Amanda. The rest of the campers entered the grounds, leaving Bobby outside.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Bobby made a mistake saying he knew I was the mastermind." Kenny confided. "But honestly, I can't take all the credit. He ran around acting like he was God's gift to the world. It ticked off Diana something fierce. And the rest is history."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Wow, I really dodged a bullet there." Edward confessed. "I'm going to really have to work hard to make sure us remaining Cobras aren't picked off one by one. But this is the team merge. All I need to do is look for the camps within the team, and pick off the ones on the outskirts."  


* * *

_Votes_

**Bobby: **Diana, Kenny, Martin, Nicolas, Shannon

**Edward: **Jake, Neil


	12. Crossing the Desert

_"Last time on Total Drama Island. The team merge was announced, and the campers had one final task to perform, reaching the new campsite. Some campers bonded before the big merge, while others, naturally, fought like wild dogs. The Eagles managed to reach the new site before the Cobras, and received their reward; the ability to oust any Cobra of their choice. Eventually, it came down to Bobby and Edward, but, between the schemes, heckling, and generally nastiness, the Eagles decided that it was Bobby who would be eliminated. Now that the teams are dissolved, will the alliances follow? Can Kenny discover the traitor? And what new horrors await our campers in the second half of Total...Drama...Island._

"Al right, campers. Welcome to our new campsite, which will be your home for the remainder of the season." Chris spoke to the new group of campers just after Bobby's departure. This new campsite was much different from the older one. Campsite was not an accurate word, Kenny found. It seemed to be an old, abandoned military complex.

"This certainly seems cheery." Kenny commented. "How long has this place been abandoned?"

"Not very long, surprisingly." Chris replied. "In this facility, the toughest of all recruits were trained to survive in various life-threatening and other dangerous situations. It went under for some reason, something about a suspicious number of deaths, and suspicious deaths makes everything much cheaper to pick up!" Chris became cheerful at the end of the comments, causing several campers to consider punching him.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I'm not exactly sure what these new challenges entail, but I'm really up for it." Edward confessed. "I've never been in any of these types of situations myself, but I've studied them, and I know about the various injuries one gets from them. It's a shame Kelly and I aren't tighter. These types of challenges should be right up her alley. But my team and her team have a bit of a chasm between us."  


* * *

(_Confession Cam)_  
"We former Eagles are going to have a serious advantage over those Cobras. Even if they all worked together, we just have the number advantage to walk right over them." Nicolas confessed. "Kenny said we still have the traitor to worry about, but we have the advantage of time. We can really concentrate on these challenges."  


* * *

"So, campers, drop off your bags in your cabins. Tomorrow, you'll be given your first challenge." Chris departed quickly. "Take a moment and congratulate each other and yourselves for surviving the pansy challenges, before you all die on the real challenges."  


* * *

The two dormitories were divided by gender. Over in the guy's cabin, everyone was cordial with each other. There were dressers provided, but the guys agreed to simply live out of their suitcases so nothing would get mixed up.

"Because no one wants to wear another guy's socks." Neil joked. The other guy's agreed, and spent the rest of the day lounging.

"Now's my chance." Edward thought. "Hey, Nick, let's chat. We never got a chance to get to know each other."

"Go ahead, Nick. No shame in a little friendly chat." Kenny lie on his bed and looked up at the ceiling, not looking at either man.

"Sure. So, Edward, tell me about yourself." Nicolas was friendly and jovial.

"Not much to tell. I'm from a small little town. My parents turned our house into a clinic, and I've been around scalpels since I was four. What about you, Nick? Your dad do the treasure hunting thing?"

"Huh, oh no. Mom was a history professor, and loved to watch movies to catch historical inaccuracies. We'd watch them all the time." Nicolas replied. Every so often, he would take a look at Kenny, who still lie on his bed, practically ignoring Edward.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It's very odd that Kenny is just passively letting Edward try to get all buddy-buddy with me. I know what he's trying, trying to get me to turn to his side on the alliance." Nicolas confessed.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Actions are best done decisively." Kenny confessed. "I know that Nicolas would figure out Edward's ulterior motive, no need to dispel that myth that I'm the brain-dead lummox by stepping in. Besides, if Edward shows his hand so early, we really don't have much to worry about him from him."  


* * *

The girls' dorm was the same size as the guy's dorm, but, with only five women around, things were much easier to divide. Diana and Shannon stuck together, the younger girl carefully unpacking her suitcases as the other crassly threw her garments in a balled up heap.

"Diana, they'll wrinkle." Shannon stated.

"I like it that way." Diana returned. "Hey, do we get our own bathroom, or are we stuck with that communal crap?"

"There's just a sink. Brush our teeth and do our eyes, but it looks like we're still sharing a john and a shower." Kelly answered.

"Damn." Diana cursed. "Much as I love men, I don't love sharing my shower with em. Shan, your brother is just..."

"Heh, you should see Jake when he dyes his hair." Amanda chimed in. "He left such a mess in the old camp. Men can be such...girls." The girls dished on their competitors for a while, only leaving when the mess bell was rang.  


* * *

Once everyone was together in the dining hall, the former Eagles seemed to cluster together at one table while the former Cobras clustered at another.

"What have you discovered?" Kenny asked Shannon.

"They're all really sweet girls." Shannon responded. "I'm going to like staying with them."

"Discover anything related to alliances or plans?" Kenny asked with a terse expression.

"No." Shannon said meekly.

"It's not all about strategy, Ken." Diana defended. "We don't even know what the challenges are going to be."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)  
_"I can appreciate Kenny's zeal for playing the game, but serious, give it a rest. We can't all be hardcore about things like that." Diana confessed.  


* * *

Chef stood at the kitchen, plates of disgusting slop adorning the front.

"You'd think with Chef in his element, he'd actually try cooking harder." Jake moaned.

"It seems we are still made to suffer." Martin agreed. "I had thought for a moment that we would be eating cold beans out of a can, and I was looking forward to it."

"Did Preach suddenly make a joke?" Nicolas teased. Martin ignored him.

"You know, Chef, you could just serve us a can of cold beans." Kenny offered. "It'll give you more time to do other things." Chef responded by throwing a glass bottle at Kenny's head.

"Just a suggestion, forget I said anything." Kenny quietly scooted away from Chef with his plate of gruel.

"Are you enjoying the new camp?" Chris joined the campers. Diana flipped him off, which caused him to chuckle.

"Can we just start the challenge?" Edward asked. "It would be much better then just eating this crap."

"In time. First off, since there are no more teams, all challenges, and immunity, will be individually earned. You've all come far by depending on each other to survive, but now, you're going to be ruthlessly backstabbing and sabotaging each other to get ahead."

"Must it always come to betrayal?" Martin asked.

"Chris, we get the rules. Get to the damn challenge." Kenny was terse and snapped at the host.

"Damn, Kenny." Neil frowned. "No need to be cross." Kenny shot an angry glare at Neil.

"Easy there. We're going to start small and work our way up." Chris explained. "That's why our first challenge is going to be painfully simple. We call it 'Crossing the Desert.''

"Hey, there's a Bible story about that, right, Preach." Diana teased.

"Would you care for the reason behind the crossing of the desert?" Martin asked. Chris ignored the infighting.

"Tomorrow, you'll be enduring blistering heat, biting wind, constant sun, and sand in the netherest of your nether regions."

"Oh, wonderful. Just where I like sand." Michelle moaned. "We start tomorrow?" Chris nodded.

"You'll get more details later. Eat up and relax, for you won't get another chance tomorrow."  


* * *

Outside of the cabins, Kenny had passed a message to Diana to assemble her and Shannon for a formal Eagles meeting.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I know we still have a traitor to deal with, but we can't go into this game without a plan of attack. I don't know how close the Cobras are, but I need to plan this as if they are all on board with each other." Kenny confessed.  


* * *

When Diana and Shannon assembled behind the guy's cabin, she saw all of the former Eagles had gathered. All except Neil.

"Where's magic man?" She asked.

"Invisible." Jake joked. He paused for a second.

"I don't know. He just didn't show up."

"I didn't expect him too." Kenny returned. "He's getting chummy with Edward."

"With Doctor?" Diana asked. "That's going to put a damper on our plans."

"I don't think so." Kenny replied. "Edward's desperate for any help he can get, which works to our advantage. I have a plan for asserting dominance over the Cobras."

"Kenny, is it really necessary to plan so cruelly?" Martin asked. "We should at least get to know the Cobras."

"I have nothing against any of them, and I doubt any of you do as well, with Bobby gone. This is strategy, it's never personal."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I do agree with Kenny, but it seems so heartless." Martin confessed. "Why should we merely right off the former Cobras. The teams are dissolved now."  


* * *

"All right, everyone. Dismissed. Rest up for tomorrow." Kenny went back into his cabin. Nicolas eagerly followed Jake, while Shannon bounced happily back to her cabin. The rest of the campers remained.

"Anyone annoyed with this arrangement?" Diana asked. "I mean, Kenny could have least asked us our opinions."

"Indeed. There is more to this competition then the game." Martin agreed. Jake was silent, seemingly pondering different things.

"I think that maybe we should assert control from Kenny." Diana returned.

"He's not the type to take that lightly." Martin noted.

"I didn't think he would be. We need to be completely prepared in that case." Diana added.

"What will you do?" Jake asked. "Will you betray him?"

"We were never on the same team." Diana defended. "Listen Jake, I know you and Kenny are tight, but we were never completely on board."

"So you just followed him to save yourself?"

"Save ourselves?" Diana protested. "What saving? Kenny didn't save us during the team challenges, we saved ourselves. We shouldn't rely on Kenny just because he says so."

"I agree." Jake stated. "But we are not on safe ground, and already you are discussing breaking ranks. I think Kenny would not be too pleased to hear this." Diana seemed to pause, while Martin, who could never hide his emotions, seemed to pale.

"Look, I know how you all feel." Jake replied.

"No, you don't." Diana pointed out. "One of Kenny's little cabana boys would never understand."

"Regardless of what you think, as long as you are loyal, you have nothing to fear from me. Soon, we'll all be against each other. But until then, Diana, you will be loyal to Kenny's team. Or else, between Kenny and myself, you won't survive this game." Jake delivered his ultimatum.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Blackmail!" Diana confessed. "I can't believe Jake would sink that low. But honestly, I can't hate him too much for it. This is a game, and he's just using what weapons he has. So for now I'll listen to Martin and his sermons on patience and bide my time."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I know it's strange to be saving Kenny when I'm the one who stabbed him in the back. I can't get over how much I hate myself for betraying him like that. Maybe now I can gain a little solace." Jake confessed.  


* * *

Amanda had been talking with Edward and Michelle for a long time, all about the future of the game.

"Kelly is not on board with anything." Michelle noted. "She just wants to do the challenges. And we all know how fun talking with Greg is. I'm almost scared to."

"And I can't." Edward replied. "But Neil and I have been getting close. It seems the rest of the Eagles are a pretty tight bunch, but there are two alphas in that pack. You know what that means?"

"They'll kill each other, or make-out session?" Michelle teased.

"It's Diana and Kenny, right?" Amanda asked. Edward nodded.

"Let's see how tomorrow goes with them." Michelle smiled. "They are the ones that need to be swayed."  


* * *

The next day, the campers had assembled outside, where Chris and Chef had parked two large vans. The campers climbed in, and they were driven out of the complex. Neither Chris nor Chef spoke while driving, giving the campers any hints as to what the challenge would specifically entail. Abruptly, however, both vans stopped, and everyone exited.

"Welcome to Crossing the Desert." Chris announced. "We're going to have a gauntlet of three challenges. You will all be attempting them at the same time, and the three campers who take the longest will be eliminated at the end of each stunt. The final three will then complete a final gauntlet for immunity.

"Sounds like fun." Kelly smiled. "Then let's get started."

"In the desert, water is the most important thing. Your first task is to construct a solar still."

"What is that?" Martin asked.

"It's used to purify water." Edward explained. "Basically, you lay a plastic sheet overtop a hole so that water can evaporate. Then, it condenses on the bottom side. There's a few other tricks to it, but that's the gist of it.

"It's usually not a good idea to make them though." Kelly frowned. "You can lose a lot of water sweating when you make them. But, if that's the challenge, then let's do it." Kelly rolled up her sleeves as Chris threw the campers some shovels from the back of the car.

"Begin!" He announced. Kelly attacked the challenge vigorously, eagerly digging a hole. She found it very easy to dig a hole in the soft ground, but after it was set up, she found herself having a more difficult time getting everything set into place. Nicolas kept pace with her, expertly putting all of the pieces together.

"Done!" He called out.

"Not bad, dude." Chris inspected Nicolas's construction, and seemed rather pleased with his efforts. "You're the first one done." After Nicolas was finished, he did not stop, rather, he went over to Shannon to assist her.

"Not bad." Diana chuckled as she watched the rather adorable site.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"To help out Shannon, even though she might be the traitor." Kenny confessed. "I have to give the dude some credit. I would have hesitated before doing it."  


* * *

Kenny managed to finish his soon after Nicolas, and went over to assist Jake. Edward, exhausted, managed to get his done third.

"You'd be amazed what you learn in science class if you just pay attention." He smiled, proud at his accomplishment. He moved over to help Amanda, but she refused his aid, so he sat back and watched the rest of the campers accomplish their tasks. Although Kelly seemed to be having trouble getting everything assembled, she was making good progress. Jake and Shannon were moving along well because of the aid they were receiving, but the rest seemed to be struggling.

"Hey, Greg, I'm all done here." Kelly stated. "You want me to..."

"Sure!" Greg cheerfully agreed. He stood back and allowed her to work at it. While they spoke, Nicolas finished with Shannon and she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Hey, Shan-ban!" Kenny seemed amazed at the outburst, causing him to nearly break Jake's still.

"Sorry, Big Brother. I just couldn't help myself."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I do kinda have a crush on Nicolas, I admit it." Shannon confessed. "How can you not. He's so handsome, and strong, and funny, and really nice. I might not have passed this challenge without him."  


* * *

Kenny managed to recover from his shock enough to finish helping Jake. After they finished, Jake asked whether or not they should help anyone else out.

"No." Kenny replied. "Diana seems angry of late. She might take offense if we help her. And Martin is almost finished, he just needs to make sure everything is secure." Jake looked over at the preacher's area to find that he was just surrounding the edges with dirt.

"Never thought you could get dirty, preach." Kenny teased. He expected Martin to deliver some Biblical retort, but instead, he silently finished his task.

"Alright, so there's only two slots left. Whose going to finish their work next?" Chris surveyed the remaining campers. Neil looked completely lost and didn't have any shot of getting it done, while Michelle was struggling as well. That left only Amanda, Diana, Greg, all of whom were in relatively the same place. But Greg had Kelly helping him and he was finished soon enough.

"Come on, Manda, you can do it." Edward silently rooted. But Diana managed to finish a second before she did. Martin cheered in excitement.

"Sorry, Edward." Amanda apologized.

"Why are you apologizing?" Edward asked. "Better to go out failing on your own then having someone help you."

"That's how I felt about it. But good luck. I'm sure you'll do fine."  


* * *

"For those of you who have survived the first challenge, we have the second. You've got water, and now, you need fire." Chris announced.

"Fire? Why fire?" Greg asked. "It's hot and bright out here."

"Deserts are known to have an extreme fluctuation in temperature." Edward explained. "It has to do with...Greg, are you even listening to me?" Edward complained when he saw that Greg now decided to busy himself with tying his shoelaces together in a knot.

"Start it any way you please, but it has to last for three minutes for it to count." Chris replied. "Just like before, the last three campers will be eliminated. Alright, get to it, you little pyros." Kelly attacked this challenge with vigor.

"Come on Greg. Let's make some fire so you can watch it dance." She grabbed him.

"Go get me some dry grass. I'm going to see what supplies we have to use." Kelly started rooting through the vans.

"Let's see, flashlights, tents, ah, here we go, flint." Kelly eagerly grabbed what she was looking for. She went back over to Greg, who, surprisingly, had set up exactly what she wanted him too.

"Let me just get this started, and it'll be easy to do one for you." Kelly started striking the rocks to create sparks. Although she was creating many sparks, she was having trouble lighting the tinder.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I know Kelly has a bit of a thing for Greg, but honestly, I think she's stringing him along a bit to help herself. Will she help him out once the fire's done?" Edward confessed. "I doubt it."  


* * *

Edward disassembled one of the flashlights and took the lens.

"Interesting parlor trick." Diana laughed. While everyone else was working furiously, Diana seemed to be taking it easy, not bothering to do much of anything. When Martin asked her what she was doing, she just say around and watched the other campers attempt to make fire. Kenny was the first camper to get his fire started, as he and Shannon worked together to get it. Once the fire was started, it was easy for Shannon to take some of his and light her own.

"What on Earth!" Kelly seemed distressed that three other campers managed to beat her.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This is supposed to be my expertise." Kelly confessed. "I can get how that Edward would get it since he's brilliant, but Kenny? That dork is really only good for hauling firewood and smashing things."  


* * *

Kelly soon managed to get a light on her tinder. It was hard to keep it lit, though, and it nearly sputtered out. She devoted her attentions to it, even shooing away Greg so that he didn't get in the way. By then, Nicolas had started his fire using two sticks. Kelly's flame started to gain a little more energy do to her ministrations, and soon she had passed the test.

"Over already? I was just starting to get a tan." Chris moaned. "Oh wait, there's still a slot left. Who thinks they can make it to the next round?" Chris looked around. Jake was furiously attempting to keep his sparks alight, while Martin appeared to be struggling. Diana's previous look of disinterest had quickly changed, as she went over to Shannon's fire and tried to light a stick to ignite her tinder.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" Kenny defended. "Get your own fire."

"This is Shannon's fire. What she does with it is her business. And I don't see her stopping me." Diana protested. Diana went to light her own tinder, ending the challenge.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Okay, maybe that trick was a little underhanded." Diana confessed. "But I'm not that great at this type of stuff. Jake would have made the fire before I would if I did it like that."  


* * *

"So, from twelve down to six." Chris noted. "The next part of the challenge is going to be food. Out here in the desert, food can be very scarce, but we have found a few things around here. Our specific food today is going to be prickly pears.

"Prickly like your heart." Michelle noted. Chris ignored her.

"You'll find them all around the area. Your task is to prepare and serve three prickly pears. If we taste a spine, then that fruit doesn't count. Alright, get going, Chef and I are starving."

Shannon moved quickly towards the nearest plant, when she stopped, and realized she didn't know what a prickly pear looked like. She turned towards Kenny, who seemed to be as lost as she was.

"Let's take a look at Edward. He'll probably know. But be discrete." He informed her. The two of them spied on Edward, and watched as he carefully kneeled beside what appeared to be a group of spiny leaves. Using a blanket, he carefully gathered some red buds on the top of the plants.

"So that's what they are." Shannon noted. "Okay, I know what to do now." She quickly retreated back to the vans to obtain the necessary equipment. Kenny did nothing while he waited for Shannon, not wanting to give any other campers any hints.  


* * *

After obtaining their fruit, to their surprise, they realized that Kelly had already obtained the fruit and was starting to sear it over the campfire she made.

"Crap, I gotta move." Kenny delicately laid down his fruit and grabbed one of the large survival knives. The smaller size of the fruit and the larger knife was making his hands shake, and he was shaving off more skin off the fruit then he would have wanted.

"Hey, Nick, get over here." Nicolas joined Kenny.

"There's no way I can do this in time." Kenny replied. "Why don't I just help you out so you can get immunity." Kenny offered.

"Really?" Nicolas asked. "I can probably get this done on my own, but why help like that?"

"It's a strategy." Kenny talked in hushed tones. "The other campers think I'm an idiot. We need to keep that guise. Besides, I'm already not going to win this challenge. Might as well help someone who can." Nicolas agreed, and the two men started to peel the fruit.

Edward was expertly handling his knife, cutting the flesh off the fruit to avoid the spines, then scorching it to get rid of the rest. But Kelly seemed more adept with the fire, and it was she who prepared the food to Chef first. He sampled it.

"Not bad." He replied. "She's all done."

"And it looks like Edward is right behind her." Chris had been tasting Edward's fruit, and although he seemed less thrilled then Chef was, Edward was still declared to be in second place. Diana was having too much difficulty cutting the fruit and her fire had weakened, which left Nicolas plenty of time to finish the challenge third.

"Alright, challenge over. Now, the final three are going to have a showdown to see who can take invincibility. For this part, there will be no help." Chris informed. "This has to be done all on their own. And it will be done tonight."  


* * *

When night fell, the air was extremely cold. The three remaining campers hung around the fire closely.

"This final part of our desert survival task is all about rescue. You've all pulled your fire together and are going to be stuck in this camp. Here's the challenge. We're going to have someone 'rescue' you tonight. Thing is, they don't know where you are. You need to adequately signal them to be found. However, there's another little twist. We'll also be releasing a few wild animals. A few hungry, meat-eating wild animals.

"Sadistic prick." Kelly insulted.

"Since you'll all be stuck at the campground, you won't know whether it's a rescuer, or a predator if you here a noise. So whoever can drive away the animal, and bring in the rescuer, will be the challenge winner. Okay, let's do it."

Once the campers were alone, they all stayed quiet in order to listen. Nicolas silently tried to discern sound from sound, but with the fire crackling, that became a little difficult.

"I wonder what kind of animals Chris was unleashing."

"It would have to be a nighttime creature." Kelly replied. "There's several large cats that come to mind."

"Lovely. Hey, Nick, you do this camping stuff often?" Edward made polite conversation. Nicolas simply stared into the fire, still trying to listen to the sounds.

"Hey, Nick!" Edward shouted.

"Wha...sorry, I'm just thinking about the challenge."

"If they make sounds, then we make our move. I've already thought of something." Edward replied. "Now is the time to relax. Chris is gone so we don't need to worry about suddenly being on fire."

"Perhaps. No, I don't camp out very often. That's more your thing, isn't it, Kelly?"

"No." Kelly replied. "I just know what to do, I don't do it very often. There's a story behind it, but there's no need to share it."

"You can't just say that." Edward replied. "You don't volunteer things and say you don't share them."

"Sure I can." Kelly replied, then started to ignore him. Soon, they all heard noises.

"Wonder who that could be?" Nicolas wondered.

"It's circling around us." Kelly paused. "Hey!" She called. There was no response from the noises. Edward simply reached into his pocket and fished out an item. Nicolas tried to see what it was, but a loud noise from Edward quickly informed him that it was a whistle. He blew on it three times. The noises completely scampered away.

"Must've been the creature." Edward replied. "It's gone now." Nicolas appeared to think for a minute, but then he disappeared from the campfire.

"Where are you going?" Kelly asked. All of a sudden, the two heard a loud, blaring noise, which was probably the car horns of the van they were in. Nicolas was sounding it several times.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Clever. The car horn is very loud and a rescuer would probably know what it is. I'm going to have to be more careful around that one." Kelly confessed.  


* * *

It wasn't along after Nick made his infernal racket that Chris showed up to the campsite.

"Alright, it looks like the challenge is over. And the winner of this challenge is...Edward!"

"Edward?" Nicolas protested. "But I'm the one who..."

"Oh yeah, that's how we found you, but you left the campsite to do it. I did say that you guys were stuck here. Gotta listen to those rules, dude. All right, everyone back to camp."  


* * *

It was extremely late by the time everyone reached the base again. Although most of the campers could barely stand, Kenny called a meeting. Once again, all of the former Eagles except for Neil were present.

"Are we in agreement on who to vote out?" He asked. Jake, Nicolas, and Shannon were eager to agree.

"What about you, Martin?" Kenny asked. Martin seemed to hesitate.

"Yeah, don't worry about us. We know what to do. This is the best path."  


* * *

"Welcome, everyone, to the first campfire ceremony at the new camp. Just like before, you'll be receiving marshmallows if you're safe, and the one that isn't is going to leave the complex, walk down to the dock, and take the Boat of Losers home. Edward, you were safe tonight, so you get the first one. Good work, dude." Edward smiled, and obtained the first prize.

"Nicolas, although you screwed up at the end, you did a good job today too. You're safe. And so are you, Kelly. Both of you, great work." The two eagerly grabbed their marshmallows.

"The next marshmallow goes to Martin." The preacher gracefully picked up his prize.

"Michelle." Michelle chuckled a bit at her name, and took her marshmallow.

"Kenny." Chris called.

"Chuck it to me, dude." Kenny held up his hand, and Chris threw the marshmallow at him.

"Amanda." Amanda breathed a sigh of relief as she gathered her prize.

"Jake." Chris called as Amanda was walking back. She gave her marshmallow to Jake so that he wouldn't need to get up, and obtained another for herself.

"Greg." Greg hollered several cries of joy as he tried to moonwalk over to get his prize. His failure to do so caused the rest of the campers to chuckle.

"Diana." Diana seemed nervous to have her name called out so late, but the color returned to her face quickly as she gathered her marshmallow.

"And this is the final marshmallow. Set to go to one of you. Neil or Shannon, one of you has gone all this way just to be sent home." Neil did not seem surprised to be on the bottom, while Shannon's face paled.

"And it's for Shannon." Chris replied, throwing her the final marshmallow. "That's it for you, Neil." Neil gathered his things before leaving. The former Cobras seemed a little surprised at the outcome, but they said their farewells as Neil left the complex towards the dock.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Neil wasn't my first choice to get rid of, Kelly was." Kenny confessed. "But she gets frustrated very easily, and that might help us out. So that's when I thought Neil would be the best bet. He wasn't really into the idea of an Eagle alliance, and we had to remove him before he made another alliance stronger. Besides, this will stop the Cobras from banding together for a while."  


* * *

Votes

**Neil** - Diana, Jake, Kenny, Nicolas, Shannon

**Shannon - **Amanda, Edward, Michelle

**Diana - **Greg, Kelly

**Kenny - **Neil


	13. Rain

_Last time on Total Drama Island. The campers checked out their new digs,_ _and tensions started to run quickly when Kenny asserted dominance yet again. However, surprisingly, it was former traitor Jake that stopped his own team from caving in on him. The campers put their survival skills to the test, giving Edward immunity, and causing magician Neil to make a disappearing act off the island. The storm is approaching, and who will be the next person to crack under the pressure? Find out tonight, here on Total...Drama...Island._

There was a steady rain falling the next day as Martin awoke.

"Such a rain." He seemed almost melancholy as he dressed. The rest of the men were still asleep.

"Huh." Martin's eyes drifted to Neil's empty bed, impeccably made just as he had done every morning.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It is very sad when we lose another comrade." Martin confessed. "Even though it is the game's nature, it's still rather tragic."  


* * *

The mess hall was empty at first, but Chris showed up shortly in a rain slicker.

"Morning campers, enjoying a little wet weather?" He asked.

"We don't have umbrellas. Or ponchos. Or any raingear." Diana reminded. "So, why exactly would we be enjoying this?"

"Because it's the backdrop for your next challenge. Last time, we put you to the test to see if you could survive a harsh environment, but we let you off easy."

"Any challenge where we make your life easier is a challenge." Edward derisively commented.

"Anyway, if you haven't noticed today, it's raining, and the weather is supposed to be this bad pretty much all day. And we've decided to make this the setting of this week's survival challenge. Welcome to Floodgate!"

"Fan-freaking-tastic." Jake noted. "What's going to be today's kill-fest."

"Like we've said before, these are going to be extremely torturous survival challenges. And it starts outside in twenty minutes." Chris left the mess hall, and, almost as if on cue, a crash of thunder and a torrent of heavier rain started to fall.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"A little rain never hurt anyone." Amanda confessed. "But it sure can mess up the makeup. Eh, what doesn't? I think we're not in for an easy day."  


* * *

Outside, it was more then just a little wet weather, the storm really appeared to have hammered the installation. Standing water was everywhere.

"And no rain gear?" Michelle asked Chris. He shook his head gleefully.

"Figures. What's the first challenge."

"Well, when wet weather of this magnitude strikes, the only thing to do is get to safety. Your challenge today is to reach the target zone just outside the base. Of course, with the entire base surrounded by a tall fence and barbed wire, that's not going to be easy. The first two campers to brave the storm and meet me in the target zone will be immune, and the rest will be at risk. As for how you're going to get there, that's all up to you guys. Don't wanna waste anymore effort in this kind of weather. Okay, enjoy!" Chris happily walked off as the other campers grumbled as they became more soaked.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"These types of challenges are actually the ones that worry me the most. The free-form, open-ended ones." Nicolas confessed. "When there's no clear-cut path to victory, there's a lot of luck involved. I'm pretty lucky, but Greg is especially lucky. There's two immunity slots, and I want to make sure that our alliance takes both of them."  


* * *

Greg immediately darted off towards the barracks, with Kelly in hot pursuit. Amanda leaned against the wall of the mess hall and started to think. Edward seemed rather impatient rather then planning out his own strategy.

"C'mon, Eddie." Michelle teased. "We've got brains on our team. You're usually the one to advocate caution and all that."

"Can it, Michelle." An extremely terse Edward responded, causing Michelle to be surprised at his outburst.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"When I was really young, my parents were trying to handle de-tox for a coked up lunatic. It was during a lightning storm and the man flipped out during a strike and grabbed my mom. Nothing came of it in the end, my mom was fine, but everytime there's a flash like that I see the image in my mind. I hate storms." Edward confessed.  


* * *

"Hey, Michelle, it's okay." Shannon consoled her. "I'm sure he didn't mean to be mean."

"I'm alright, sweetie. But thanks, hon, you're alright." Michelle replied. Shannon chuckled, causing Kenny to cock an eyebrow at her behavior.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Shan-ban really is that sweet, but she's usually not this overt about it." Kenny confessed. "Very odd that she'd be acting that way."  


* * *

"Hey, Shannon, it seems like Manda and Edward want a little private time." Michelle chuckled.

"Pardon me?" Amanda asked, but Michelle ignored her.

"Maybe you and I can team up a while. I need a brainiac."

"Umm...okay. What a wonderful idea. Big brother..." Shannon started.

"Do whatever you like." Kenny replied. "I've got a plan of my own." And with that, Kenny took off running towards the dock the campers arrived at.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_"There is something seriously up with Kenny." Edward confessed. "And I don't want to stick around to find out. I've just got to think of a way out of here. The walls are too high to climb and the barbed wire means I can't jump out, but this place isn't full-proof. Chris got out, I mean."  


* * *

Shannon and Michelle walked together towards the north end of the base. They had never been to that part of the base before, and figured it was as good a place as any to start.

"Chris would probably barricade the doors anyway. It wouldn't make it that easy." Shannon figured. The north side of the base had very little to it, just an old locked munitions dump and a vehicle garage. The garage was open, so the girls ducked in to take a moment to rest and get out of the rain.

"Man, it's really pouring." Michelle commented.

"The lower areas would probably be flooded. I bet Chris probably brought more water in just to make it harder. That's something he would do."

"Well, it makes no difference what he does. We just need to get where we're going. Okay, so what's in here."

"Nothing that would help. Those jeeps don't look like they've moved in years. Look at the rust." Shannon noted. "And a car wouldn't work in this kind of weather anyway, it would hydroplane."

"Wow, you really are smart." Michelle noted. "I'm glad I decided to ask you."

"Oh, thanks." Shannon blushed a little. "But I'm not anything special. I mean, my big brother's really smart."

"I'm sure." Michelle commented. "But really you need to stop selling yourself so short."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"That girl, she really does just dote on her big brother. He's cute, but I'm starting to have my doubts about Shannon. She's supposedly the leader of the whole big Eagle alliance, but it's like a mean thought never crossed her mind. What is her secret?" Michelle confessed.  


* * *

Amanda and Edward decided to head to the front gates of the installation to find them locked and bolted.

"I figured that, but really there aren't many other places to go." Amanda replied. "Let's just fan our search around here." The two searched around the gate with no success.

"If only it wasn't because of this gate..." Edward wondered.

"Forget trying to get it open." Amanda returned. "We would need a large explosion to do that. And we won't get any fire to burn long enough in this weather." The two of them quickly ran off to find another area. As soon as they were out of sight, Kelly slinked silently over to door, dragging Greg along with her.

"So what are we doing that this impossibly locked gate?" Greg asked cheerfully.

"First off, the gate is not impossibly locked. Second, I have an idea. Did you bring that rope?"

"Yeah, I've got rope. It's very wet. I'm very wet."

"You're...never mind. Do you know why I asked you to get that rope?" Kelly asked.

"Because we're going to go into that guard tower and lower a rope from the window?" Greg asked. Kelly started to correct him, but quickly paused.

"That's...correct. You...you knew what I was planning?" Kelly seemed surprised. Greg giggled, completely ignoring her.

"Just hang on to that rope while I get this door open." Kelly found the door locked, but this was a simple wooden door. It would be simple to ram and break. It took a little effort, but soon, she was inside.

"It's not raining in here. That's good because I'm so wet. My socks are making squishy noises."

"Greg, can you just tie the rope." Kelly asked, exasperated with his antics.

"But you're better at tying knots then me. I mean, that's military standard stuff, isn't it?" Greg pointed out. "Why don't you tie the rope. I'm going to get out of these really wet clothes. They aren't doing me any good." He passed the rope to Kelly.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I heard somewhere that genius and madness are two sides of the same coin, and Greg validates that better then anyone. He's pretty strong, smart, perpetually in a good mood, cute, and never lacks in courage. I wonder if he just acts weird for weird's sake, or he just doesn't like being burdened with responsibility. Such a waste. Wait, did I say cute? I didn't...err...crap!" Kelly confessed.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"So after I got out of those wet clothes, I waited for Kelly to tie the rope. I'm sure all of you in TV land can see it, but she sure is beautiful when she works. The way she delicately moves her hands as she ties the rope, the way her brow furrows, and all that weird stupid romantic crap people say. I could act all lovey-dovey starry-farry eyed, but that would be so ridiculous." Greg confessed.  


* * *

Kenny had headed for the dock as soon as he figured out the challenge. There would be no way Chris could seal that off. When he got to the dock, however, he started to wonder whether or not his plan was a good idea. Most of the dock was completely flooded in around a foot of water.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"My plan was to get a motorboat and sail up the river." Kenny confessed. "I saw a few here when we first arrived. Wouldn't be very easy with this rapid water, but nothing I couldn't handle. However, this might be harder then I thought."  


* * *

"Hey, stranger!" A voice was barely audible in the wind. Kenny turned to see Diana, Nicolas, Jake, and Martin all coming over to join him.

"Having luck?" He asked. They shook their heads.

"Martin's idea wasn't going to work, and we just ran across Jake who wasn't having any luck. We saw you head this way, wanted to see if you had anymore luck. That water's kinda fierce." Diana noted.

"No other choice. If you're gonna help out, let's move!" Grabbing some rope from a nearby shed, Kenny tied a safety line around his waist, and moved towards the end of the dock, where a boat awaited. It was easier then he thought to get to the boat, but that probably had to do with the fact that he had the others. Using the rope allowed the others to get onto the boat fairly simply.

"I don't think we should be on this thing." Martin noted. "It could tip very easily."

"We only need to get outside of the walls." Kenny replied. "It won't be so bad."

"Can you even drive this thing?" Martin noted. Kenny paused. It was true, he really didn't know how to start this particular boat.

"Guess I shoulda thought ahead, huh." Kenny felt sheepish. "Well, maybe we can reach the outside from..." He didn't have enough time to get out his sentence, as another swell rocked the boat again, causing Kenny to topple over the side. In a desperate move, Jake immediately grabbed the rope that was Kenny's lifeline, and jumped over the side while holding onto it. He dove under the water following it, and quickly managed to bring Kenny to the surface. The rest of the team struggled with the rope, but managed to get the two aground. Immediately, they managed to move away from the docks.

"Sorry." Kenny replied. "I'm...sorry." He managed to get out between coughing up dirty water.

"Why don't you take a rest on this challenge." Diana offered. "We've still got numbers and we know what to do. I'd rather you not try some other stupid tactic."

"Yeah." Kenny, to Diana's surprise, agreed with her. "Maybe I should. But thanks, Jake. You really saved me there."

"Eh, you'd do the same for me. No need for thanks."

"Of course I do. I'm not some inbred hick with no manners." Kenny replied.

"Well, I've got another idea." Diana replied. "I'm going to see if I can make up some lost time. C'mon holy man, let's see if God's 40-day flood's got something on me."

"The Great Flood and this..." Martin was pulled away before he could protest.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Man, poor Kenny. I don't see how he's going to win this challenge even if he didn't decide to take a rest since we're so far behind." Nicolas confessed. "I sure hope we can take those immunity spots now."  


* * *

Back in the vehicle garage, Shannon was trying to formulate a plan. Michelle, however, didn't seem interested in getting the challenge reward. Girl talk was more on her mind.

"So, hon, any secret crushes you been finding at camp?" Shannon blushed from the question.

"I don't think that's appropriate." Shannon defended.

"You just answered it." Michelle replied. "Come on and dish, girl."

"Oh, stop, please." Shannon blushed and averted her gaze. "We're competitors."

"But we are girls first." Michelle countered. "And a little girl talk is what every girl needs once in a while. You've got all boys on your team. Well, except Diana, but she's not really girly. All the women on your team left."

"Well, considering who they were, that's not a surprise, is it? I'm sure Edward told you about Ingrid, and Allison was, well, of no help at all. Pretty much ever." Shannon noted. "But there's nothing wrong with men."

"Nothing at all." Michelle agreed. "I love men. But that doesn't mean it's not nice to have another woman to talk to. I just have Amanda, and she's real quiet."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"So I'm getting Shannon to spill the beans on her team. I already know that they are an alliance, and I got that, but really, I need to know the dirt. Their alliance is supposedly this big looming behemoth axeing people like Neil at whim, but Shannon's far too nice for it. I'm about to ask her more questions when it hits me. Edward thought she was the leader of the whole thing, and he's wrong. Shannon's just the brainpower, but the real ruthless leader of it is Big Brother Kenny. He hides behind acting like a stupid jock, while he's really the one calling the shots. Pretty clever." Michelle confessed.  


* * *

Diana and Martin had gone to the gate to see if there was a way out that way. While they were there, they noticed that the door to the guard tower had been rammed. Inside, they noticed a rope dangling outside of a window, and a pile of wet clothes.

"Those are Greg's." Martin noticed.

"Wonder if he melted like the Wicked Witch." Diana joked.

"They climbed out the window." Martin replied. He looked with apprehension at the rope.

"I don't see any other way." Diana started to climb out the window. She skillfully descended down to the ground. She then held the rope at the bottom so Martin could climb.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I never knew Preach had such a fear of heights. He tried to help Kenny like it was nothing, but his face was so pale as he climbed down, I thought he was going to fall."  


* * *

Martin managed to make it down with Diana's coaching. Outside, the ground was even worse then the base. It was covered in slippery mud, and both of them had to practically crawl to get up the inclines.

"Where is the target zone?" Martin asked. Diana tried to scan the horizon.

"I can't see it." Diana replied. "We should climb that tree."

"In the rain? That will be difficult. I wish Jake was here, but we don't have the time to find him."

"I've gotta do it." Diana replied, and started to make her way up the tree.  


* * *

Amanda was growing frustrated. Although the two of them managed to find a way out near the dock, Edward was getting increasingly agitated with every lightning strike.

"Chris said it wasn't going to be far away. Let's just fan out and keep the base's walls in mind." Amanda replied. The concept was easy enough, but the heavy rains were really cutting down on visibility. But Edward tried his best to focus and they tried to search the area. They weren't having any luck near the river. Amanda suggested going up the hill, but with such poor visibility and trees everywhere up there, it wasn't going to be the best lookout spot. They headed around the hill to find the area nearby was almost completely flooded.

"We're not going to get through that." Edward noted.

"Do you think that it's over there?" Amanda asked.

"Probably. You know Chris. The more deadly, the better. That water is far too deep to wade across."

"And we're not supposed to be in six inches of running water in a flood." Amanda affirmed.

"It's not a very wide chasm to cross." Edward noted, his breath heavy from his nerves. "We don't have a bridge, but if we climb that tree, we might be able to jump the rest of the way."

"That's risky." Amanda frowned. "But I don't see the alternative. I'll go first." Amanda climbed the tree with care, and stretched herself onto the branch. It was far too thin to walk on, but she was able to drop down and hang from it with no difficulty. She had to swing to get some momentum, but swung over to the other side.

"Hey, that was actually a little fun. Okay, Edward, it's your turn now." Amanda called. Edward managed to climb up the tree fairly easily, but his gait was unsteady and he started to transition to the branch. He leaned down to carefully dangle himself from the branch, but at that moment, a very large, close lightning strike flashed.

"That was a close one." Amanda noted before turning to Edward, who was now clutching the tree branch, shivering uncontrollably.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I knew Edward was bad with lightning, but this is just bad. He could fall into the waters if he loses his grip. I can't reach him from where I was." Amanda confessed. "I had to try and talk him down."  


* * *

"Edward!" Amanda shouted. He didn't seem to hear her, and just clutched onto the tree branch.

"Edward, listen to me! You can do this!" Amanda shouted out words of encouragement. His eyes opened as he strained to see her.

"Come on, Edward. It's all you. You aren't going to let this get you down. Make the jump!"  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Ever since I was young, lightning scared me because of that incident. But I'm a teenager now, and I gotta stop running to the past." Edward confessed.  


* * *

He gritted his teeth and dropped down to hang from the branches. He screamed as he swung around the branch and leapt towards safety. He crashed straight into Amanda.

"Sorry, hon. Wow, what an anti-romantic ending to such a heartfelt made-for-TV scene."

"Made for TV?" Amanda asked.

"Just playing. Thanks, I really owe you." Edward gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Amanda's heart started to flutter as she briefly forgot she was drenched and covered in mud.  


* * *

Amanda and Edward were right about where Chris was located, but it had come too late. For when the two of them arrived, they had found an elated Kelly already sitting comfortably under a tent. She was still very wet, so she probably hadn't been there long. Outside of the tent was Greg, down to his boxers, dancing in the rain as if he had a partner. The rain was starting to let up, and once it subsided, Chris summoned the rest of the campers.

"I gotta say, crew, this was one sorry bunch." He addressed the soaked, mud-covered, disgusting looking campers.

"Kelly and Greg got here in no time at all, and the rest of you just tried stupid tactics. You couldn't have waited until I was there to beat on you for it?"

"Chris, shut up. No one cares what you think." A terse Diana replied.

"Greg and Kelly are both immune tonight, and the rest of you are at risk. Get cleaned up, get changed, Greg, please put some clothes on, and I'll see you at elimination. Alright, enjoy."

Once back at the camp, the showers almost immediately became full. Kenny managed to hop in first and get finished just in time to see Michelle and Shannon walk in.

"Hi, big brother." Shannon smiled, seeming very happy to see him.

"Hi, Shan-ban. Michelle."

"Kenny." Michelle seemed brief. "So, Shan, after we get all cleaned up, think you can help me with my hair? I want to flat-iron it and get it straight, and I just don't trust Diana with an iron."

"I wouldn't either. It's so great we have so much in common, Michelle. I'd love to help. Okay, Kenny, I'll see you later tonight, bye!" Shannon darted in the shower. Kenny frowned a bit before he went back to the boy's dorm.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Now I know something's weird. Shannon acting all chummy to Michelle? She never acts like that to the enemy. I really don't want to admit it, but there really doesn't seem to be any other option. That's where Shannon's allegiance lies. She's been the traitor I've been looking for all along."  


* * *

Just before the elimination ceremony, Kenny called in Jake and Nicolas to meet outside the dorm room, and told them what he discovered about Shannon.

"I don't believe it." Nicolas was clearly extremely upset. Jake tried to speak, but Kenny kept talking.

"I don't want to do it, but it's clear. We have to do what we have to do. I knew Diana wouldn't believe me, so I didn't bring her around. Listen, I know this sucks, but I really could use discretion here. We'll try to pick the game up and make it up later. Alright, I'll see you guys later." Kenny darted off, while Nicolas, still shocked by the revelation, stumbled around until he made it back to the dorm room. Jake was so surprised at Kenny's deductions that he didn't know what to say.

"Campers, this is the Elimination Ceremony." Chris had assembled the campers. Although the crew had done a good job of getting rid of all the standing water, the mood was as gloomy as the day's earlier weather.

"You've all cast your votes and made your decisions. If you get a marshmallow, good for you. If not, you're out of the competition, and you can't come back. Ever. Okay, so Kelly and Greg were both safe tonight, so they get the first marshmallows."

"Score!" Greg cheered.

"Alright, and the next marshmallow goes to Nicolas." Nicolas nodded as he obtained his token of safety.

"Diana." Diana smiled, eager to be called so early.

"Amanda." She graciously picked up her prize.

"Martin." Martin made the sign of the Cross before grabbing his marshmallow.

"Edward." Edward immediately devoured his marshmallow and sat in close to Amanda upon returning to his seat.

"Michelle." Michelle gathered her prize, and smiled over at Shannon, waving to her. Shannon returned the smile.

"Jake." Jake went to grab his prize, but the smile quickly faded from Shannon's face.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Kenny and Shannon on the bottom two?" Diana confessed. "Did I miss something?"  


* * *

"This is the final marshmallow. Kenny and Shannon, our brother and sister dream team. One of you will be leaving Total Drama Island tonight." Shannon face paled as she grabbed her brother's knee. Kenny did not look at her, but he didn't shrug off her grasp like he normally would have done.

"Kenny, you're safe. Shannon, sorry girl." Chris tossed the marshmallow to Kenny. Shannon seemed surprised for a moment, but nodded.

"Thanks for everything, everyone. I love all of you." She gave hugs to her former alliance mates as well as Michelle, saving her big brother for last. She walked down to the Dock and was out of sight before long. Kenny stood there at the dock and watched as she left.

"Hey, Kenny." Diana's rude voice sounded. "What just happened?"

"What does it look like?" Kenny was in no mood to speak tonight. "You think I want to talk right now?" Diana glared at him, but said nothing further and stormed back to the girl's dorm.

"Kenny..." Jake went over to try and talk to him. He slung his arm around his shoulder, but Kenny shrugged it off.

"Go away, please." Kenny replied. Jake sighed, but turned around. Once Kenny was all alone, he heard a brief thunderclasp, and it wasn't long until the rain came back and poured on top of him.

"No fair, sky." Kenny mumbled, only slightly grateful that the rain disguised his tears. "It's my turn to cry."  


* * *

_Votes_

**Shannon: **Greg, Jake, Kelly, Kenny, Nicolas

**Kenny: **Amanda, Edward, Michelle

**Amanda: **Diana, Martin, Shannon


	14. Roll with the Traps

_"Last time on Total Drama Island. Wet weather abounded as the campers tried to weather one of the fiercest storms to ever hit the area and escape the base. Amanda convinced Edward to overcome his fear of lightning, Jake saved Kenny from drowning, and Michelle got closer to Shannon, who managed to reveal that Kenny was the real mastermind behind her alliance. While Shannon was just engaging in some girl talk, Kenny got the wrong sort of signal, figuring her to be a traitor, and it was Shannon who left the island. With the Eagle alliance on such rocky ground, who will by for control of this game. Will Jake get a chance at forgiveness, or is everyone trapped with no way out? Find out tonight, here on Total...Drama....Island."_

The rain had subsided by morning, but the gloomy atmosphere over the base did not abate. Kenny awoke with a throbbing headache and a fatigued attitude.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It hurts, you know. Votin' off my little sister, traitor or no, was not an easy decision." Kenny confessed. "I'm really just want to move past this now and work on the game. It's the only thing that keeping me sane."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I feel sick to my stomach." Jake confessed. "I really wanted to stop Kenny from doing that to Shannon, but I couldn't get a word in to that guy. Now I'm not sure what to do. Confessing isn't going to bring Shannon back, and it'll probably just make Kenny deliver his response to the bridge of my nose, or worse, quit the game."  


* * *

Michelle stretched lazily in the girls's barracks. The sleep was not refreshing and she reflected on the short time she got to know Shannon. She learned some key details about their strategy, which was helpful, but Shannon herself was a sweet person, and Michelle lamented that they were on opposing teams.

"Maybe if she was around instead of Jessica, we girls might have had some real fun together." Michelle noted silently.  


* * *

Chris was nowhere to be found when the campers awoke. Neither was Chef when the campers entered the mess.

"At least Chef was kind enough to leave us some food." Nicolas noted. On the stove in the back, there was a pot of indistinct grey sludge on the back burner. It certainly didn't taste any different from Chef's normal food, but it stopped hunger pangs.

"So, where is that host?" Greg asked. No one answered him.

"C'mon, where are you, Chris?" He asked again. Again, no response.

"Greg, he's not going to appear just because you snap your fingers." Edward sighed.

"I didn't snap my fingers." Greg replied. He started looking at his hand, and started snapping his fingers.

"You had to encourage him." Kelly huffed. "But where is Chris. He'd never miss out on a chance to brutalize us. And if he's not here, Chef would be still around. Both of them..."

"Well, we finally get some piece and quiet, I say we enjoy it while we can." Martin said. "Take some time off for spiritual reflection."

"Or whatever else you all do when your alone. Just make sure no one walks in the boy's dorm." Diana cracked.

"You are incorrigible, Diana." Martin sighed.

"Yeah, but you like it!" Michelle teased.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Although a little time to rest is a nice thing, whenever we see calm like this, it usually means it isn't going to be calm. Chris is planning some completely painful exercise for us." Amanda confessed.  


* * *

There was no sign from Chris or Chef all day. As the morning gave way to afternoon, the campers started to get restless. Most of them napped through the early afternoon, leaving them cranky and anxious when they woke up and there was still nothing to do. Kenny seemed especially restless, and made it a point never to be remaining still. He exercised in the dorm, took walks around the campground, anything to keep from being still. At one time, Diana had confronted him on his walk.

"Kenny, I wanted to ask you something about last night's vote off." Diana rudely demanded.

"Ask the confession cam."Kenny dismissed.

"I'm asking you. That was exceedingly strange. How did they get enough votes to get off Shannon. We had the numbers."

"It seems the alliance is not as strong as we thought. I told you before about Henry's traitor. And that is all that needs to be spoken. Besides, war is not a matter of numbers. It is strategy. Shannon's strategy failed that day. What else needs to be said."

"You aren't telling me something." Diana noted.

"I don't tell you many things because they aren't relevant. All you need care about is getting yourself to the finale. I will deal with getting me to the finale. Think that I would betray my own alliance?" Diana had no answer to that question, and so Kenny walked away.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I don't know what is up with Kenny, but I don't like it. I guess I'm being a little harsh on him, he's just as sad as I am. But something's fishy here." Diana confessed.  


* * *

As the sun started to set, the campers started to wonder whether Chris decided to take a snow day without telling them.

"It makes sense." Kelly noted. All of the campers had gathered in the girls's dorm.

"Or he could be planning some horrible thing at night." Nicolas cautioned. "Either one would make sense for Chris."

"I wonder what the challenge could be." Martin noted to himself.

"Is it something that should be shared so openly?" Kenny posed. "These are individual challenges, let us not forget." Everyone paused for a moment.

"Oh, right, I ruin the huggy love fest. No one other then me remembered this was a challenge?"

"We didn't." Michelle replied. "It's just well, rude."

"I'm rude." Kenny replied. "Or not really. But honestly, even if I knew what the challenge was, why would I share it. In this game, it's all about advantages. Play nice if you want, but you're going to be viciously stabbing each other in the back to succeed. That is how these games are played." No one responded to him

"Just the answer I was looking for. You're all as selfish as I am. At least I can be open about it. I'm going to bed. Night, everyone." Kenny left the dorm and returned to the boy's dorm.

"What crawled up his butt and died?" Greg asked.

"It's Shannon." Nicolas replied. "Sorry about him. He's just been upset."

"Little sister gone or no, grace is everything." Amanda noted. "He could at least be more well-mannered."

"Well, there's no sense complaining about it." Diana returned. "As crappy as Kenny's acting, he'll get over it. Then we'll return to playing the game. We probably should hit the hay. Just don't sleep too heavily, Chris will probably wake us up in the night."  


* * *

Sleep came surprisingly blissfully to all of the campers. But not to the lone figure who walked through the base.

Chris MacLean snickered.

"You thought you had the day off, did you? Well, you did. Sleep tight, campers. Your challenge begins right now."  


* * *

When Michelle awoke, she felt extremely groggy. Her legs hurt, there was a terrible pain in her neck, and her back felt stiff. She opened her eyes to blackness.

"What the..." She wondered. Perhaps she merely awoke very early. But she soon realized she was lying on the floor.

"Did I fall out of bed? I haven't done that since I was seven." Michelle tried to get her eyes adjusted to the darkness so she could find her bed. But she found she wasn't in the girls' dorm anymore. She couldn't make out any details of the room due to the lack of light, but the floor felt cold and grainy under her feet. With her arms outstretched, she tried to find a light switch or door. She bumped into several things, but managed to make her way towards a door, which she promptly found was locked. However, a light switch near the door gave her some illimunation. A bare, flickering bulb showed her what appeared to be an old storage room. Some old, rusty looking weapons populated the shelves. Michelle also noticed that Nicolas, still asleep, was in the room with her.

"How did we get here?" She wondered as she went to wake him.  


* * *

Kenny woke up to find himself lying on his back in a room similar to the dormitory, but this room looked infinitely less comfortable, and the dorm wasn't comfortable as is. Old rusty metal pipes lie haphazardly around the room, along with some broken glass. Kenny was lying on an old, stained mattress. He quickly got to his feet, and a sharp pain spread through his body. Looking down, he saw that he had stepped on a piece of wood with an errant nail sticking out.

"Kenny, was that you?" Jake's voice called to him.

"Jake?" Kenny wondered. "When did we get here?"

"When I woke up, it was like this." He responded. "You all right?"

"I'm fine. Where are we?"

"I don't know. But I found this taped to the door." Jake handed Kenny a folded piece of paper. He opened it up.

"_Greetings campers. Your next challenge is all about escaping. When you're in a tight spot, the true survival genius must be able to adapt and make his way out of any dangerous game using only his wits. While you were sleeping, I had the interns bring you to his abandoned old facility out in the base. First team to escape out the front door wins immunity."_

"Even when he writes, I want to hit him." Kenny growled.

"Tell me about it." Jake returned. "I've been looking around but there isn't anything here to help us get out. That door is locked."

"Well, that's the challenge." Kenny returned. "We're supposed to improvise. Thrown to the dogs with just the clothes on our back."

"And we were asleep, so that's not saying much." Jake shivered, and Kenny acknowledged. Both he and Jake were only in their boxers.

"Well, to be in a dirty bedroom in my boxers with another man. Not exactly high on my wish list." Jake joked.

"I'm not good enough for you?" Kenny returned the joke, laying back on the mattress and striking an inviting pose. Jake laughed.

"I'm more concerned with our lack of shoes." Kenny's tone became more serious. "Having a shirt or pants won't change anything, but there's a lot of crap on the floor and the lighting isn't that good. We're going to need to watch where we step."  


* * *

Amanda was surprisingly calm when she thought about the challenge, so calm that it surprised her.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Martin is my partner, and that makes me feel a bit better. He's honest and upstanding. But it wasn't just that. This is my type of challenge. I hate to admit it, but I don't like being under pressure. Here, though, I can use my brains and think quietly, sorting out the best course of action at my own pace." Amanda confessed.  


* * *

Martin was silently praying as Amanda surveyed her surroundings. The room they were locked in appeared to be an office with old computer equipment. It didn't appear to be broken, but the machines wouldn't power on.

"Maybe so, but I think I can use this." She unhooked one of the power cables and wrapped it around her arm.

"Martin." She called. Martin silently made the sign of the Cross and stood up.

"Yes?" He asked.

"Do you have any ideas on how we get out of this room?" She asked.

"The door is locked, and the door is made from a heavy iron. I doubt that we could ram it. There is very little lighting in this room, so I haven't been able to see anything.

"Unwrap a few of these cables." Amanda instructed. "In the meantime, I'm going to try that door." True to what Martin said, the door was not going to budge.

"This lock looks fairly old." Amanda noted. "Do you see any thick wire lying around here. I can probably pick it." Martin looked around on the desk and was able to find a reel of wire. Biting her lip, Amanda instructed Martin to rummage the drawers some more while she set to work on the door.  


* * *

Diana was pretty dismayed to be partnered with Greg.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"While Crazy is great if I need a cheap laugh, a nonsense quip, or for catching butterflies, I don't think he's going to be of much help here." Diana confessed. "He'll be amazed by the flickering lights and creepy sounds and all that. I'll be surprised if I get out of this room."  


* * *

"Greg, have you figured out a way to get us out of this room?" Diana asked.

"No." Greg replied cheerfully. "But there's definitely a way since they brought us in here."

"They could have just locked the door behind them, you idiot." Diana huffed to herself. "I guess it's up to me." Diana attempted to look at the door. The door was secured by a very heavy padlock. Although Diana started to work on it with a nail in an attempt to pick it, she found it was far too complex for such a task.

"Can we hit it?" Greg asked cheerfully.

"Greg, I'm trying to...Sure, why not. Go ahead and break it, crazy." She stepped to allow him to destroy it. Why he grabbed a plank of wood and attempted to smash it, Diana mulled over various routes to take once the area was secure.  


* * *

Edward and Kelly were non-plussed when they discovered their surroundings.

"I can't honestly be shocked at this." Edward noted, fidgeting a little.

"I'm not either. This wasn't exactly what I had in mind, but it wasn't outside the realms of possibility." Kelly agreed. "I don't even think this will be much of a challenge. Shall we go, Edward?"

"You seem fairly cool."

"And you're not?" Kelly returned. "You're at least decently clad."

"I wouldn't call a T-shirt and gym shorts decently clad when this floor hasn't been cleaned in what appears to be over thirty years. There's probably quite a bit of vermin abound."

"If we move, they'll probably get scared and skitter away. C'mon, we've got work to do." They found that the room they were trapped in had two doors. One appeared to lead directly outside, but it appeared to have been welded shut. The other was locked with a simple lock, but neither of them knew how to pick it.

"We could smash it fairly easily." Kelly returned. "It's too close to the door to pry off."

"Must it come to violence?" Edward wondered. "I believe this challenge is supposed to call for creativity."

"Hacker." Kelly replied. "Sometimes the best course of action is to blast straight through it. Isn't that why the reason why Bobby's plans failed?"

"His plans failed only occasionally. He last as long as he did." Edward returned. "Blast your way through it if you want, but I get the next plan."

"This isn't a personal contest."

"Never said it was. But if we keep pounding around, we're going to be heard. And I have an inkling that is what we're trying to avoid."

"Possibly, but I doubt it. You think Chris would go someplace so dirty? He likes his manicures and other metro things." Kelly made short work of the lock, and the two made their way into a hallway. There were many doors, all of them locked.

"That other door lead outside, so we're close to a side. We should follow the hallway down and try to find another door." Edward noted.

"Lead the way." Kelly agreed. "I'll keep my ears open."  


* * *

Amanda and Martin made their way out into another room. Unlike the other room, this room appeared to be kept in much nicer condition. There was a bookshelf, a desk, and small candles, as well as a lack of detritus on the floor.

"If only it was always this clean." Martin seemed relieved. Amanda wasn't convinced.

"If it's this clean, that means it's intended to be this way. There's something here." Amanda looked over at the desk. Old pictures and decorations made her believe this belonged to an officer of some kind.

"Hmmm..." She reached for a single book lying on the desk, only to hear a strange noise once she pulled it towards her. Martin quickly grabbed her and yanked her out of the way, as an arrow whizzed into the desk and struck just where her arm would have been.

"A trap?" Amanda was in disbelief.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Ah, crossbows make anything better." Chris confessed.  


* * *

"Good reflexes." Amanda praised. "But now that makes me want to check it even more. Traps aren't set for no reason."

"Chris would set a trap for no reason." Martin corrected.

"True. But still, this is worth checking." Amanda reached for the book again, and there was no arrow shot. The book itself wasn't an actual book, Amanda opened it to reveal that it was a hollow book with a secret compartment for storing valuables.

"I thought these only existed in movies." Amanada chuckled. Inside she saw another key. She passed it off to Martin, who tried it in the door, but found the key did not fit.

"It must go somewhere else." Amanda returned to the book box, and could swear she saw something written on the inside of it. It was difficult to make out in the light, but she swore she could make out a single phrase.

"Hmmm...why smile upon your mother that last smile?" Amanda recited, turning the book every so often to catch the light.

"Well that doesn't make sense." Martin noted. "That has nothing to do with this. There are no children here." He moved towards the bookshelf.

"Hmmm...maybe it's another book." Amanda noted. "That's the only thing in this room." Martin nodded, and reached for another book, only to hear a whiz from behind him, and another crossbow bolt bury itself into the book, narrowly missing his shoulder.

"That's not good." Amanda frowned, and stepped away from the bookshelf. "If the books are trapped..."

"One book trapped doesn't mean all of them are. That trap didn't trigger until I touched it. We can look at the titles."

"The line is the clue. Have you read that line before?" Amanda repeated the line.

"It doesn't jump out at me." Martin returned. "Perhaps if I..." Martin skimmed the titles to find they were all pieces of classical literature.

"Well, maybe we can muddle it out by context." Amanda noted. "You know this literature. I only recently started reading them."

"There is little else to do in the church but read. Come, let us think."  


* * *

Edward started to make his way down the hallway. With all of the doors locked going the way he planned, he had little choice but to go backwards towards his starting place to try another path. Kelly was silent, and didn't make any snide comments to Edward's disbelief. Going back the other way, it didn't take long for the two to find a door that opened.

The inside of this room was dusty and chaotic. It appeared as though the original purpose of this room was some sort of munitions storeroom. Boxes were spilled haphazardly around, bullets lie strewn upon the floor.

"I hope there are no active grenades here. Explosions...not fun." Edward noted.

"I doubt it. These bullets look very old." Kelly bent down to examine one. "I think they would have removed anything like that a long time ago. See anything around here."

"There's another door. Look, over there." Edward noted. On the other end of the room was a vague outline of a door. It was locked, but, pasted to the door, was another of Chris's notes. Edward picked up the note and read it.

"_Trace your way out"_

"Oh great, art class. Something else I hate." Edward moaned.

"I don't think it's drawing." Kelly replied. "There's no material for that here." Edward calmed down when she spoke, and started to think.

"Well, guns and ammo are your thing, hon. The only thing I know about guns is that they go bang. What traces guns?" Kelly started to think for a second.

"Well, there are tracer bullets." Kelly replied. "They're for signaling. How would we find them here?" She looked at the haphazard mess.

"We grab a box and look. There's ways to tell that stuff, right?" Edward started his search.  


* * *

Kenny and Jake were wandering the hallway, creeping silently along the halls. There were no sounds. The hallway's floor was much safer to walk upon then the rooms, considering there was much less bric-a-brac abound.

"Wonder where the exit is." Jake mused.

"This hallway ends. We're going to have to try a room." Kenny tried the first door he came to, and was surprised to find it open easily. This room was filled with statues of old armor.

"What is this, the base's museum or something?" Kenny scowled.

"Look at the ground. It's barely dusty in here. Chris must have set this up for the challenge." Jake noted.

"Hmph. And what are suits of armor supposed to do, scare us? Well, boo, Chris!" Kenny pushed a suit of armor. The armor barely budged, but Kenny gasped and quickly withdrew his hand.

"What happened? Are you okay." Jake noted.

"It burns." Kenny grimaced. Jake look at Kenny's hand. The skin was red and starting to blister.

"It's some kind of acid." Kenny remarked, rubbing his hand on the floor to help get the acid off. "Chris must've just filled this entire place with weird traps."

"This isn't good." Jake noted. "Now I'm going to be paranoid."

"Oh, it could be worse." Kenny was surprisingly optimistic.

"Kenny?"

"Sure. I'm stuck in a barely-lit abandoned military base, stripped to my boxers and two seconds away from springing who knows what kind of deathtrap, but hey, at least I've got a good partner and friend to be blind, injured, and practically naked with." Kenny was very cheerful. Jake's face was pale.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This is horrible." Jake confessed. "I have to tell him, I just have to. But should I really tell him now? I don't want him to trigger traps accidentally and hurt himself."  


* * *

Diana and Greg found themselves in a room similar to a greenhouse.

"Don't touch the water, much less drink it." Diana noted. "It doesn't look safe."

"Eeeww!" Greg stared at a center stone fountain, which wasn't active, but had what appeared to be brown, disgusting sewer water left in the bowl.

"Where are we going to go?" Diana wondered. "It looks like this is a deadend."

"There's a door over there." Greg cheered. "It's behind those shelves with plants on them. Dead plants. Why don't they just clean out the plants and use the pots. Pots are useful. Then they don't need to make new pots." Diana tried to ignore Greg's ramblings and focused on the wall. Sure enough, there were hanging shelves cleverly disguising a door.

"I'll get the left, you get the right." Diana replied. Greg stood to the side of the shelf, and tried to unfasten the bottom securing point. As he did, he felt a sharp bite go into his arm.

"Ow!" He howled and stepped back. Diana finished her clamor without error. Without going to check on Greg, she went over to the other side to see what had happened. It appeared as though Chris had set a clever tripwire there, causing a rather large chunk of metal to protrude from the wall when it was disturbed. Now that it was exposed, Diana would be able to avoid it when moving that side.

"Are you okay?" Diana asked. Greg didn't reply.

"Well, I'll make sure to tell Edward if I see him first."

"Isn't there anything you can do. It hurts." Greg had a pleading sense in his voice. For the first time Diana sensed not childishness in his voice, but a desperate sense of urgency. He did appear to be in a serious amount of pain.

She relented.

"Okay, okay, let's see it." Greg's arm had a long narrow cut which spanned from his shoulder to the middle of his forearm. It bled profusely, and Diana had nothing in which to treat it.

"Sorry, Greg." She responded sincerely. "I don't really think I can do anything with it. There's no equipment or anything. But we can get this door open, then the challenge is over. We'll make sure it's the first thing Edward does if I have to drag him." Greg didn't reply again, but he made a few whimpering noises and nodded.

"How about you sit down. I'll take care of the door." She offered.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I do feel bad for what happened. I'm not sympathetic if someone breaks the rules or picks a fight and gets hurt, but I'm the one who told Greg what to do. That's on me, not him." Diana confessed.  


* * *

Diana looked at the door. It appeared to be made of glass and was securely locked from the other side. There was a small note on the door

"This isn't the front door, but you can get around with this." Diana recited the words. "The key to the door is exactly where you don't want it to be."

"That's not very helpful." Greg snapped. Diana nodded.

"It could be anywhere in this dump. It might even be behind another locked door. This clue doesn't give us any hints on where to start." Greg huffed and clutched him arm. Diana returned by the door and looked at it, hoping to find some sort of clue.

"It's just one stupid key." Diana muttered to herself. "No padlocks, no crazy code locks or any of that high-tech crap. How am I supposed to open this with no clues." She stared for a second. She figured she could try bashing the lock just like before, but denied it. Who knew what sort of traps were stuck on the door, and, if what happened to Greg would be considered common, they would both be out of commission for this challenge.

Then Diana stood up. Why should she even bother with that stupid riddle? She grabbed one of the pots, now scattered to the floor due to the shelf removal, and threw it at the door. The glass shattered. Carefully, Diana reached through the open glass and unlocked the door from the other side.

"The things you do when you ignore fair play. C'mon, crazy, let's get out of here." Diana chuckled.  


* * *

Michelle and Nicolas were getting nowhere. After what felt like an eternity, the two managed to escape from their room, and found themselves in another, completely pitch black room. With no windows at all, they could barely see through the open door.

"What are we supposed to do here?" Nicolas wondered.

"Feel for the lights?" Michelle started feeling around the wall, but quickly found that to be fruitless. A light switch could have been anywhere and there was too much surface area to cover.

"There's got to be a better way. What do you do in these situations, Adventure Boy?"

"I hate that nickname." Nicolas responded tersely. "I tend to find myself better equipped for these situations. One would never walk without a flashlight or fire. I don't see how we can make any of that here."

"Well, I guess we're stuck fumbling in the dark, then." Michelle noted. "What now?"

"I think I can see a dangling socket. But there's no bulb." Carefully, Nicolas made his way towards the area.

"Yep, it's definitely one. We need that other bulb. Go and get it."

"And we'd be stuck in the total dark." Michelle replied. "I really don't like the dark."

"Scared?"

"No, I just don't like it. We dancers are very visual."

"I gathered that. It's okay. I'll just call out and you can make your way to me. Careful not to fall." Michelle bit her lip, and went towards the light bulb.

"Don't worry, I do know to shut the bulb off before grabbing it." Michelle joked before shutting the light out. She waited a moment, then grabbed the bulb.

"It's warm, but I'm fine." She made her way into the second room fairly easily, but now the room was completely pitch black, she couldn't even see her own hand in front of her face. Although she remained calm, it unnerved her immensely.

"Here I am." Nicolas called out, and Michelle started to make her way towards him. Nicolas continued to speak until Michelle bumped into him. She managed to hand the bulb off to him, and Nicolas quickly placed it in. With the light in the room, it was easy to make their way forward. They found two doors on the opposite side of the room.

"Which one?" Michelle asked. "Maybe left?"

"Should we split?" Nicolas moved towards the door on the right, but squinted when he noticed the door was slightly ajar.

"I don't like this." He noted. "It seems too placed."

"I don't either." Michelle agreed. She moved to the door and kicked it from afar. Nothing happened.

"I would've thought that would have been something." Michelle remarked, and walked into the room. This room was significantly smaller, with only a large trunk shoved in a corner. Tenatively, Nicolas reached towards it. He lifted the lid, and nothing happened.

"Phew. I kinda thought something would happen." Michelle confessed.

"And that's why you pushed me to open it?" Nicolas returned.

"Well, I figured you'd be more used to booby traps, Indy." Michelle joked, but her tone held a slightly serious tone to it. The trunk contained mostly old papers. Michele bent down and wondered if they were a clue, Nicolas stooping down to join her. The papers themselves were all mathematical formulae that neither of them could decipher. As they started to put them away, they heard a loud slam and a click. They turned around to discover that the door that led them into the room was secured and locked. Nicolas kicked it a few times to no avail.

"Now what?" Michelle moaned.  


* * *

Amanda was having no luck with the books. She was able to figure out that the first answer was _Medea, _with the key from the first book unlocking the that book ended up being fake as well, only to have another key for another book with another line written on the inside. After five books, both Amanda and Martin were getting frustrated.

"We'll lose all time if we continue with this farce." Martin returned. "There must be something else."

"I think you're right, Martin. These are adapting challenges. We're not supposed to follow the rules." Amanda had a flash of insight. She threw the book box onto the ground and started to scan the books again. She ignored the classic literature and antiquities, and soon found herself looking at a book entitled "_The Way Out." _Remembering what happened with the crossbow earlier, Amanda used a piece of wood to fish out the book. This book was another book-box, but it was unlocked, and contained the key to the door.

"Heh." Amanda chuckled. She and Martin soon found themselves in another hallway. She heard footsteps ahead of her. As she and Martin crept along, the footsteps stopped and were replaced by the sound of grunting and groaning.

"Sounds like someone is forcing a door." Martin noted. The two moved forward, and saw a pair of people pry open a door with a metal pipe. Once the door was open and a little light shown through, Amanda saw that it was Jake and Kenny.

"So, it looks like we're not the only ones who got out." Kenny wiped the sweat off his brow, and Amanda averted her gaze shyly.

"Chill, it's okay. I'm not embarrassed by this challenge and neither should you be. Take pride in yourself." The four went into the next room. This room, unlike before, had natural light streaming through a hole in the ceiling. Kenny thought to climb, but the walls were too smooth and it was too high to reach.

"The door." Martin noted. Another note was taped to another locked door.

"One more room." Martin recited. "The last room is just ahead. You and your partner have got ten you through, but now you must go alone. There is a switch to pull to unlock the door, but it only stays open when it is held. Who will stay and who will go? Who can face the challenge ahead? Fail, and you'll be stuck here."

"Interesting concept." Amanda noted. She easily located what she was looking for. "So, then, who will go?" Kenny crossed his arms across his chest, saying nothing.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"One of the things we learned here was to twist the rules to our advantage. The fact that another team is here is helpful. I'll just let them decide which of them should pull the switch, then Jake and I can both go through the door. Simple and brilliant." Kenny confessed.  


* * *

Amanda and Martin were dragging their feet on deciding who to choose.

"You guys might as well give up." Kenny chuckled. "There's no way you can beat us."

"Kenny, remember the sin of pride." Martin replied sternly.

"I know all about it, preach. But I'm just being honest, here. I'm sure you two did a wonderful job by yourself, but this is me and Jake." Kenny grabbed Jake in a friendly hug.

"You two are you two." Amanda dismissed. "That doesn't mean we'll let you walk over us."

"I'm sure that you won't. But Jake and I are an unstoppable force." Kenny boasted. "There might be no official teams around, but today it's paired off. You guys are enemies, and we're not. There's just no way me and my best buddy here aren't going to win this game!" As Kenny shouted wildly, Jake started to wince as if someone had struck him. He grew more and more uncomfortable.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"So here I am, trying to make Amanda or Martin so angry they hit the switch without thinking so we can move on, and all of a sudden, Jake comes out of nowhere and says something that will haunt me for a long time." Kenny confessed.  


* * *

"Kenny, enough!" Jake shouted. "I...I just can't take it anymore." Jake started huffing.

"Kenny, it's me." Jake stated. "It wasn't Shannon who betrayed your team, it was me. All me. I'm the one who voted Henry out." Amanda looked at Jake strangely, Martin started mulling things over in his mind. Kenny remained quiet the entire time. A long moment passed.

"Kenny." Jake's voice started to plead. Kenny glared at him with a stern gaze, and turned towards the door.

"Push the switch." Kenny sternly ordered. Jake hesitated, but grabbed the lever and pulled it down. The door opened, and Kenny darted through without a word.

"I'm not sure what's going on." Amanda noted. "But it would not be a good idea for you to continue like that. He seems ready to wipe the floor with you."

"Indeed." Martin affirmed.

"I know." Jake replied. "And I'm sure I've got a lot to explain. But for now I guess I'll just leave Kenny to win the challenge. Hey, make sure he doesn't get hurt, okay? I mean, with all those traps and such." Jake pulled the switch for Martin and Amanda to go through. After passing through the door, they found themselves in a completely unfurnished room. There was a door, wide-open and showing the outside, on the far side of the room. But inside the room was Chef, his face scowling, holding a large metal pipe. Kenny stood between Amanda and Chef.

"Nice try, kiddies. But the only way to win this challenge is..."

"Cram it." Kenny growled.

"What did you say?" Chef became incensed.

"I am in no mood to be dealing with a prison reject who couldn't cook his way out of a wet paper bag. Now get out of my way!" He ordered. Chef laughed.

"You think you can scare me, prissy boy." He demanded. Kenny didn't answer. Instead, Kenny charged and reared a punch straight at Chef's face. Chef blocked it, and the two started trading blows. For a second, Amanda and Martin were too shocked to do anything other then watch the fight. Chef was the bigger opponent, but Kenny fought with such savagery, almost as if he was trying to provoke Chef.

"You aren't going to win. Don't even try." Chef threw Kenny to the ground. Almost immediately, Kenny got back up and threw a few more blows. Chef blocked the first, but the second caught him in the gut, and a swift uppercut by Kenny knocked him prone. The way to the door was clear, but Kenny didn't even acknowledge it. His eyes were focused on Chef.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"If I didn't know better, I would have sworn that Kenny had lost his mind over the bad food we had been eating." Martin confessed. "I wanted to pull him out, but I am no fighter. It would only have resulted in my injury."  


* * *

"That was nothing." Kenny taunted Chef with a pelvic thrust.

"You are asking for trouble, boy. I'm not going to take it easy on you." Chef's voice turned low.

"Dazzle me!" Kenny charged again. As the fight waged on, Amanda snapped out of watching the brutality and walked towards the door. She emerged quickly. Chris was outside waiting.

"And that's game." He announced. "It looks like Amanda and Martin are the pair to win invincibility."  


* * *

Some time later, the campers were assembled outside.

"I want to know who locked us in that room." Michelle frowned. Chris sheepishly raised his hand.

"That was the trap." He chuckled. "Everyone else is at risk tonight."

"We could have made it if we didn't get lost in those hallways." Kelly chastised her partner.

"I don't recall you being of much help. Now, I've got to go take care of Greg's injuries." Edward retorted.

"I'll handle that." Kelly replied. "You're not the only one who can fix things. Why don't you go patch up Kenny." Kelly turned towards Kenny, who had sustained a black eye and several cuts.

"I'm fine, I don't need any help." Kenny growled. "I just need a shower." He walked off towards the boy's dorm.

"What happened to him. I would have never thought he'd snap like that." Michelle remarked. Martin glared at Jake.

"Shall I tell them, Jake?" Martin dared. "Your sins lay heavy upon you." Jake took a deep breath, and told them what he had revealed. Edward seemed disinterested, Michelle seemed sympathetic.

"So, after all this time." Diana remarked. "All the blackmail, all the remarks about loyalty, you were the traitor. And it was Shannon who suffered.

"It wasn't my decision to get rid of Shannon." Jake defended. No one was listening to him, and the group dispersed.  


* * *

Jake needed to find Kenny quickly, and found him just as he was getting out of the shower.

"Kenny, we need to talk."

"What is this, a soap opera?" Kenny remarked. "I'm wearing a towel, can't this wait."

"No." Jake insisted. "Kenny, I need to tell you..."

"Where you're coming from." Kenny interrupted. "What your motivation was, your reasoning. All that happy hippie crap. It doesn't matter, Jake. I know you had your reasons. What difference do they make? Would it honestly change my opinion on the matter?" Jake started to speak, but stopped. In truth, he knew that they would not.

"It's okay." Kenny remarked, as he wandered over to the mirror to comb his hair.

"What?" Jake remarked. That was the last thing he expected to hear.

"This is a game." Kenny remarked. "And in the end it comes down to one. Further, it was my lapse in judgment that caused Shannon's elimination. I do not blame you for it."

"What does that mean?"

"Nothing." Kenny remarked. "Nothing at all. What did you expect it to mean?"

"Forgiveness, maybe." Jake seemed hopeful.

"If that is all you want, then you can have it." Kenny's tone changed to a dismissive, cool tone. "I don't blame you. This is a game."

"Screw the game, Kenny! I'm talking about you, and I'm talking about me."

"Do you need Preach to make forgiveness official. Like I said, it makes no difference. Me as a person or me as a competitor. I forgive you for what you've done. I compounded it on myself more then you did. But you have revealed yourself to be a traitor to me, and I will have the alliance vote you out tonight. After all, how can I trust a traitor?"  


* * *

Everyone was apprehensive as the Elimination Ceremony rolled around. They barely listened to Chris as he delivered his usual speech about receiving marshmallows. When he called up Martin and Amanda to receive their marshmallows, no one spoke. Soon Edward, Kelly, Kenny, and Nicolas received theirs. But neither Michelle nor Diana seemed fazed when they saw there were few marshmallows left. Even Greg didn't seem bothered when he and Jake were the final ones to receive a marshmallow. Jake simply had a resigned look upon his face, while Greg stared at a swirling mass of dirt in front of the fire. When Chris called Greg's name, Jake made no protests, nor remark of surprise. He merely grabbed his bags and started to walk down the dock. When he got halfway down the dock, he turned around to see if anyone had followed him down. They didn't. When he reached the boat he turned around, and only Kenny was standing there. The two men exchanged no words. And then the boat silently drug Jake away.  


* * *

_Votes_

**Jake: **Amanda, Diana, Edward, Greg, Kelly, Kenny, Martin, Michelle, Nicolas

**Edward:** Jake


	15. Sole Survivors

"_Last time on Total Drama Island. The campers were ambushed as they slept and locked into an old, abandoned depot in the base, and tasked with finding their own way out through improvisation and lateral thinking. Greg and Diana were rockin' it until Greg hit a nasty trap set by Yours Truly and pretty much removed himself from the contest. Amanda and Martin managed to win the challenge, but the real surprise was Jake, who revealed to his partner Kenny who the real traitor on his team was. Unsurprisingly, Kenny rounded his alliance together and Jake walked the Dock of Shame. It's down to the final 9, and it's anyone's game this time around. Who won't make it to the next round? Who's going to be stopped cold in their tracks? Find out tonight, here on Total...Drama....Island__!" _

The next morning was very quiet in the boy's dorm. Usually, Jake's noises would be the thing to awaken everyone from their slumber. Now, however, the entire boy's dorm was bitterly quiet, minus some snoring.

Kenny was the only one not asleep. He had been lying in bed, staring holes into the back wall, randomly passing out from exhaustion and awakening again several times during the night.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"It's never happened to me before, but I'm just not feeling this game right now. I'm sick of the bullcrap, sick of the food, and all the betraying and backstabbing. I thought I could trust you, Jake. You were like a brother to me." Kenny confessed.  


* * *

At breakfast, Kenny stared vacantly into his food, even stomaching Chef's slop without protest, but he made no conversation, or gave eye contact, to anyone else.

"So, I wonder what is in store for us next." Martin noted with a smile.

"Chris wasn't kidding when he stated that survival challenges are going to be harder this time around." Diana agreed. "Greg sustained a really nasty arm injury."

"Was it serious, or was he making a scene?" Nicolas asked.

"No, it was pretty bad." Diana noted. "I'm glad Edward was there to treat it; no one should be suffering that sort of pain."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Diana acts like a big rebel, not caring, doesn't play by the rules and stuff, but I can tell she's actually very compassionate." Martin confessed. "Although she's not the most refined woman around, she's still a soldier of God. Not like anyone I've ever met before. It is said that great is the mystery of godliness."  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Preach? He's an all right guy." Diana confessed. "I usually don't trust people of faith, since always seem to sound innocent to the point of mental disorder. Martin's innocent, but he works within the real world. I could see him preaching to heroin addicts lying in the gutter, just to save their own souls. You can't help but admire such a pure soul in this world."  


* * *

"Good morning, campers." Chris entered the mess hall.

"How is everyone this fine summer morning?"

"You're cheerful today, win a bet or something?" Michelle asked.

"Ask me again after the challenge." Chris teased. "Now, I'm sure you're all ready and prepared for your next death-defying stunt."

"Sure, why not." Kenny remarked glumly, not looking at Chris. Chris ignored him.

"Challenge starts right after brekky. And I hope you're prepared to bring it. Because you have no idea what I'm going to throw at you this time." Chris rubbed his hands as he headed away.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"We never have any idea what Chris is going to throw at us, but I think I am ready." Amanda confessed. "Last week's challenge showed me that I can do this stuff too. It's not always about Kelly or Nicolas. Or...ahem...Edward. I still remember how I helped him during the rainstorm. When he was clutching that tree branch, shaking for dear life, and I talked him down, well, I tell you, that was a big step for me."  


* * *

"Campers, I want you all to ask yourself something." Chris had assembled the campers outside of the complex, but he offered no clues as to what the challenge was going to be.

"Theses challenges are all about survival challenges. So, tell me, what makes a survivalist."

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"This is unusual. Is Chris actually asking for input from us?" Michelle confessed. "I smell a rat. I think maybe I'll have to say something different this time around."  


* * *

"Well, a true survivalist is competent. He can be given the most intricate task and accomplish it." Nicolas quickly answered.

"She has to lead, and inspire others." Amanda added.

"If nature throws her something, she has to be able to deal with it." Kelly answered.

"He has to be able to save a life. To survive is to live." Edward smiled.

"He has to be calm, calm, always calm." Greg continued. Everyone was surprised by his completely rational answer.

"He must be prepared to swallow his pride." Kenny added.

"She has to fight. To trust in her fists, because sometimes, that's all you have." Diana added.

"Diana, not all battles are won with fists." Martin cautioned. "I would think that a true survival expert should be able to win a battle without any violence at all."

"She has to do it all, and make it look easy, so other people aren't as nervous and stuff." Michelle delivered.

"All of those are excellent answers." Chris noted. "And all of them are correct." Everyone was surprised at Chris's praise.

"So, what's the challenge." Kelly asked.

"I'm ready to go right now." Nicolas agreed.

"In time. In time. You'll be getting ready tomorrow. Take some time to rest up. You'll thank me for that later." And Chris departed without another word.

* * *

"He's acting strangely." Michelle noted once she, Amanda, and Edward had all convened at the mess hall. No one else was around.

"He's always acting strangely." Edward noted. "I think now is the time to discuss strategy."

"What do you mean, Edward?" Amanda asked.

"I mean that Kenny's alliance dominated us through force of numbers, and now, that's no longer the case."

"They still have Kenny, Nick. Diana, and Martin."

"Not really. Diana is pissed off at Kenny something fierce." Michelle noticed. "I've seen them. I think now is the time for us to strike. There's four groups: Ours, Kenny's, Diana's, and Kelly's. But Kenny's gone all emo now. Nicolas is the strongest threat."

"I still say we can't underestimate Kenny." Edward stated.

"We need to make sure we pick off the strongest." Amanda sided with Michelle. "I don't like the idea of doing that, but this is a contest, it's nothing personal."

* * *

The next day, Chris gathered all of the campers at the dock.

"Amanda and Martin, you two won the challenge last week. One of you gets to go first. Choose between yourselves." Chris instructed. The two winners looked at each other.

"Go ahead, Martin." Amanda offered.

"Thank you." Martin replied genuinely.

"Alright, Martin, you go first. Pick any camper here other then yourself." Chris instructed.

"Well, Diana, I suppose." Martin answered.

"Alright, now Diana. Pick any camper other then yourself or Martin."

"Oh." Diana furrowed her brow. "I'll take Greg, then."

"Kelly!" Greg eagerly answered.

"I shall pick Edward." Kelly continued.

"Nicolas." Edward answered.

"Amanda." Nicolas quickly chimed in.

"Michelle." Amanda eagerly volunteered.

"Kenny's the only one left." Michelle noted.

"And that means Kenny, you get Martin."

"Okay. So what does that mean?" Kenny asked.

"Glad your interested. Remember how I asked you all yesterday what made a true survivalist, and each of you gave me a different answer?"

"We're accomplishing the tasks we set out yesterday, aren't we?" Kelly asked. Chris nodded.

"If you complete your task, you get immunity. If you don't, then you're at risk. That does mean more then one person can get immunity. So make sure you bring it!"

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Okay, I know some basic first aid. Comes with the territory. But I don't know how to save lives!" Kelly confessed. "But I guess I did come here for a challenge."  


* * *

"Okay, so why don't we start with you, Diana. Your task is actually very simple." Chris handed Diana a rather strange looking electronic device.

"You need to feed a wire through one end of this device to the other. If you touch a side, however..."

"It shocks me." Diana noted.

"No, but you have to start over. However, if you lose your cool even once, you're done." Chris stated, slicing a finger across his throat to emphasize his point.

"Lay it on me!" Diana eagerly volunteered. Chris gave her a wire and some tweezers, and Diana started on the task. It was actually very simple to her, and she was making good time with it. Her calm stride was short-lived, however, for Chris quickly threw a cream pie in her face.

"Sonofabitch!" Diana shouted.

"Well, Diana's done." Chris shrugged. "It was supposed to be staying calm under any circumstance." Chris noted. Diana kicked the ground in frustration.

* * *

The next person to accomplish their task Edward. Nicolas had mentioned that his task was to be given an intricate task, and Edward was ready for it. After all, he was undergoing medical training done in most colleges. He knew what an intricate task was.

Chris, though, seemed to be aware of this. His task for Edward was to measure exactly 1 ounce of honey into a jar.

"Oh, come on. You think I'm not used to precision measuring." Edward scoffed. However, he quickly learned how his bravado, for honey was extremely vicious, and hard to measure properly. He didn't even have a syringe or any tools to help him. Edward bit his lip and failed many times. Every time though, an extra drop or something seemed to get in the way. Chris was not the culprit, however.

It proved to be far too much for Edward, and he kicked the glass over in frustration, ending the task in failure.

"You guys all suck at this!" Chris exasperated. "Okay, Nicolas, you're up."

* * *

Nicolas was brought to a high cliffside near the base, where Chef and the two interns from the rescue challenge, Mark and Brooke, were waiting.

"Nice to see you again." Nicolas smiled. The two interns returned his pleasantries.

"There are two planks spanning one end of the cliff to the other. You need to convince two out of these three to walk across it." Chris informed.

"There ain't no way!" Chef stated.

"Chris would totally knock us off!" Brooke returned.

"Hey, come on, it's not that bad. Chris will be right here the entire time, and you know how to ignore him, Chef." Nicolas stated. Chef glared at him.

"And Mark, come on, dude, we've been buds since day 1." Nicolas turned to the intern. "You can do this, I know you can."

"Dude, I know I can. But Chris..." Chris grinned evilly at the interns when he said that.

"Screw Chris!" Nicolas stated. Chris did not seem to appreciate that.

"There is nothing Chris can't throw at you guys that you cannot conquer. Look at you. You are Mark, and you are Brooke. You guys are interns who have survived over half a season. No matter any of Chris's bullcrap attempts to get you to get hurt, you've lived! You guys are paragons, ideals. Super interns." Nicolas stated. Brooke seemed to be enchanted, while Mark tried to stifle his smile.

"You guys are awesome, you guys are incredible. You will cross that bridge, and you will survive this show. And then you'll be known forever as the two interns that Chris MacLean couldn't beat. Put that on a resume! And all you have to do is cross that gorge. I've got my eye on Chris, he can't do anything to you. Cross it, I know you can. I believe in you!" Brooke eagerly moved across the planks at Nicolas's insistence, and Mark soon followed. Nicolas, while still looking at Chris, shouted encouraging words to the two. Soon, they crossed the chasm.

"Alright, Nicolas, you did do it. Could've done without the insults, though." Chris looked cross with Nicolas.

"You brought it on yourself." Nicolas stated.

* * *

"Alright, Amanda, you are next. Your task is simple. In fact, it should be something you know well." Chris handed her a pair of the largest platform shoes she had ever seen.

"How can you walk in those." Michelle noted.

"She's going to have to learn." Chris noted. "Amanda, your task is to walk down the Dock of Shame and back wearing those heels.

"That dock isn't very secure." Edward did not look happy.

"I know. Hey, Chef, cue the wind!" Chris ordered. Edward and Michelle saw Chef turn on a large wind turbine, and now the task was close to impossible.

"And remember, the task is to make it look easy." Chris instructed. "The runway is yours." Chris bowed. Amanda put on the shoes without a word.

"Be careful!" Michelle instructed. "And save those shoes. There's something I can do with them." Amanda smiled at her friend, and started down the runway. It was difficult, and Amanda nearly fell to her knees several times. But she tried her best not to let it show.

"Hey, she's trying really hard." Kelly noted. "I'm impressed." Amanda reached the end of the Dock and carefully manuevered her way around. Her face was zenlike as she turned around.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"That girl is definitely strong!" Greg confessed. "She's like, changed a lot since she got here. She used to be all stutterbox. Now's she awesome!"  


* * *

Michelle never stopped encouragement.

"Come on, Amanda, you can do it. You look awesome up there!" Edward joined in the praise. However, the second that Edward spoke, Amanda smiled at him. This loss of focus caused her to lose her balance, and she toppled to the ground.

"Ow." Chris noted. Edward went over to help her.

"I'm sorry." Edward apologized.

"No, it's alright." Amanda returned. "I guess I didn't win. Help me get these shoes off, please."

* * *

Greg had to accomplish his task next.

"I've made this one especially for you, dude." Chris noted. Once Amanda was off the dock, Chris quickly shoved Greg into the water.

"Swim from one end to the other and back. And watch out for traps!" Chris smiled. Greg eagerly tackled the swim, despite still being fully dressed. But when he got halfway across, his pace started to slow, and then he started noticing a narrow fin in the water.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"So now he brings the man-eating ultra-rare freshwater sharks into the picture. Jeez, and I thought I was mean." Kenny confessed.  


* * *

There was absolutely no way Greg could outswim the shark, so he quickly made a motion to give up.

"And I was hoping for blood." Chris moaned. "Alright, who is next. I think it's you, Kenny."

"Lovely." Kenny groaned. "I have to win a fight without using violence, right? Who am I fighting."

"Chef, of course. He was eager for a rematch as soon as he figured it out." Chris answered. As if on cue, Chef walked over, with a hockey stick in hand.

"I've been waiting for this, boy." Chef smiled a wicked grin. "And remember, you can't use violence at all."

"Screw the challenge, I just want to hurt someone." Kenny spit before tackling Chef. The sound of the violence drowned out Chris's notes that Kenny lost the challenge.

* * *

"We're onto our seventh person, and only one of you has passed. This is pathetic. Michelle, you're up."

"I had...who did I have?" Michelle thought.

"Kenny." Amanda noted. "He said a true survivalist has to swallow his pride."

"That's not too bad." Michelle noted. "How bad can it be." She turned to Chris.

"You have to admit your deepest, darkest fear on national television." Chris noted. Michelle's eyes widened.

"Oh crap." She noted.

"Come on, Michelle!" Amanda encouraged.

"We'll want the immunity." Edward added. Michelle did not share his enthusiasm.

"Come on, Michelle, you're bold and daring, and not afraid of your faults. What, are you not a natural blonde or something?" Edward stated.

"No! I'm as blonde as you are." Michelle replied. "I..." She trailed off.

"Come on, Michelle, we won't think less of you."

"It's not you guys I'm worried about." Michelle noted. "It's...it's my brother."

"Brothers stand by everyone. Good ones do, at least." It was Kenny who said these words of encouragement. Michelle looked at him strangely.

"Well..." Michelle noted. The cameraman zoomed into her.

"I'm...I'm scared to lose my brother. He's in the military, and I fought tooth and nail to get him to drop out. Everytime I think about him off in the war I get so scared I start crying!" Tears started to form in Michelle's eyes. Kenny's eyes widened.

"I...I had no idea." Amanda noted.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"As long as I can remember, it's been my brother taking care of me. He's paid pretty well being in the service, and he doesn't even spend one dime of it on himself. It's all about sacrifice, he said. And I'm scared that it makes me a bad person because I don't stop him. There, Chris, are you satisfied now?" Michelle confessed.

* * *

"Alright, so Michelle wins immunity with Nicolas." Chris noted. Amanda and Edward moved over to their comrade. Amanda embraced the girl with a hug, while Edward stood back, expecting her to grab him in support, which she did quickly.

"Okay, now we've got our army girl. Kelly, you picked Edward, so now you've got to save a life."

"So...CPR?" Kelly asked.

"Too easy." Chris noted. Chef came over and brought a lifesize Chris doll made of rubber.

"Can we make an exchange, the real one for the dummy?" Kelly asked.

"No." Chris scowled. "This thing has been immersed in ice for a long time, so it's temperature is low. Your task is to raise it's temperature 30 degrees quickly. Using normal life saving techniques. And go!"

Kelly had no idea how to go about her task. She started CPR techniques, and covered the dummy in a thick blanket, but she had no idea how to go about it quickly.  


* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"I could have asked Edward for help, but honestly, what would be the point of that? I'm supposed to accomplish these tasks by myself. I'm the only one I can count on in battle." Kelly confessed.  


* * *

Kelly did not accomplish her task in the allotted time, and now, Chris turned to Martin, the only person who hadn't completed his task yet.

"Martin, as you've probably guessed by now, your job is to win in a fistfight." Chris explained.

"How crude." Martin returned.

"Come on, preach. You can do this." Diana encouraged.

"I'd really rather not resort to violence."

"You're going to want to." Chris returned. "Because, just like Kenny, you're fighting Chef, and he's not very happy."

"Kenny, you got any tips for preach?" Diana asked. Kenny was pretty bruised up.

"Chef's in worse shape, so he probably will be fighting a lot cruder. Don't get hit."

"I'll keep that in mind." Martin noted sarcastically.

"Come on, skinny." Chef ordered. He and Martin were in the courtyard.

"Begin!" Chris stated. The two men started circling each other.

"There is no need for violence." Martin stated. Chef stepped in close, and Martin ducked.

"You aren't going to win like that, skinny." Chef insulted.

"Sticks and stones." Martin replied.

"Little pansy." Chef moved in with a jab, catching Martin in the ribs. He grunted.

"You are pathetic!" Chef insulted. Martin scowled.

"Preach, come on, you can do it!" Diana encouraged.

"He'll forgive you, won't he?" Nicolas eagerly spoke.

"This is..." Martin started, but Chef quickly tackled Martin and brought him to a grapple.

"This is nothing!" Chef stated. Martin scowled.

"Man, I don't know what the grungy chick sees in you." Chef insulted. Martin immediately scowled in anger, and bucked from his hips, knocking Chef out of Martin's guard. Immediately, Martin flew into a rage and pinned Chef, punching him in the face repeatedly.

"Wow!" Diana and Chris were both impressed. Martin did not hear them as he continued to punch Chef.

Chef did not give up immediately afterwards, and the two men continued their brawl. But soon, Chef called for the end after a killer hook from Martin caused Chef to drop to a knee.

"Wow, preach!" Diana was impressed.

"I...think I must pray." Martin stated. He started wobbling unsteadily on his feet.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"There is nothing hotter then a calm guy going wild. And Martin's such a genuine guy. I might have to rethink him a little." Diana confessed.  


* * *

At the elimination ceremony, Martin and Kenny were both extremely sore. Michelle still seemed down after her earlier revelation. But everyone's eyes were focused on Chris.

"Soon, nine will be eight." Chris explained. "You've all cast your votes and made your decisions. Come up and get a marshmallow if I call your name.

* * *

_(Confession Cam)_  
"Kenny didn't call a meeting for strategy like he normally would." Nicolas confessed. "I think that thing with Shannon and Jake is bothering him more then he would admit. I wish he'd get back into the game."  


* * *

"Martin, Michelle, and Nicolas are all safe tonight. Here are your marshmallows." Chris threw the winners their prizes.

"First up is Greg." Chris offered his prize to Greg.

"Next is Amanda." The girl smiled at Edward before getting her prize, with no sign of a limp from her injury.

"Kenny." Chris threw his marshmallow to the big guy, who ate it without a word.

"Diana." Martin smiled as Diana received her prize.

"And now, it's down to the final two. Kelly or Edward. One of you will be going home tonight." Chris looked at them. Kelly looked around nervously as her name was not called, while Edward looked straight ahead.

"And the final marshmallow..." Chris trailed off. No one moved.

"Is yours, Edward. Kelly, you're done."

"No!" Greg shouted.

"Hey, we all gotta go sometime." Kelly stood up, grabbed her duffel bag, and made her way to the dock.

"Kelly!" Greg pleaded as he followed her.

"Hey, knock em dead, crazy. You're my boy." Kelly smiled at him. Greg still looked sad.

"What the hell." Kelly noted before she grabbed Greg by the cheeks and kissed him.

"See ya, everyone. Had fun while it lasted!" Kelly boarded the boat, and everyone watched as it drove silently into the night.

_Votes_

**Kelly: **Amanda, Edward, Michelle, Nicolas

**Edward: **Diana, Martin

**Diana: **Greg, Kelly

**Greg: **Kenny


End file.
